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Genes
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Early Embryonic Development of Animals
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Early Embryonic Development of Animals

A special issue of Genes (ISSN 2073-4425). This special issue belongs to the section "Animal Genetics and Genomics".

Deadline for manuscript submissions: closed (20 March 2022) | Viewed by 5611

Special Issue Editors

Prof. Dr. Kun Zhang

E-Mail Website
Guest Editor
College of Animal Sciences, Zhejiang University, Hangzhou 310058, China
Interests: preimplantation; embryo; epigenetics; genome editing; cattle; pig; mouse
Special Issues, Collections and Topics in MDPI journals
Prof. Dr. Xueming Zhao

E-Mail Website
Guest Editor
Institute of Animal Sciences, Chinese Academy of Agricultural Sciences, Beijing, China
Interests: embryonic development; molecular biology; cell biology; epigenetics
Special Issues, Collections and Topics in MDPI journals

Special Issue Information

Dear Colleagues,

Early embryo mortality is one leading factor contributing to reproductive failure in mammals. A variety of developmental and molecular events have to be finely tuned to produce a competent embryo. Such events include epigenetic reprogramming, maternal embryonic transition, lineage specification, and maternal embryo recognition, insufficiencies in which are usually accompanied by a high risk of early embryo death. These crucial events are subject to the influences of genetics, disease, environments, and the nutritional state of animals. However, the understanding of the regulation of early embryonic development remains incomplete and requires further investigation.

In this Special Issue, we welcome the submission of original manuscripts (research articles or reviews) focusing on topics, including but not limited to, epigenetic reprograming, maternal embryonic transition, lineage specification, maternal embryo recognition, as well as novel approaches for improving early embryonic development.

Prof. Dr. Kun Zhang
Prof. Dr. Xueming Zhao
Guest Editors

Manuscript Submission Information

Manuscripts should be submitted online at www.mdpi.com by registering and logging in to this website. Once you are registered, click here to go to the submission form. Manuscripts can be submitted until the deadline. All submissions that pass pre-check are peer-reviewed. Accepted papers will be published continuously in the journal (as soon as accepted) and will be listed together on the special issue website. Research articles, review articles as well as short communications are invited. For planned papers, a title and short abstract (about 100 words) can be sent to the Editorial Office for announcement on this website.

Submitted manuscripts should not have been published previously, nor be under consideration for publication elsewhere (except conference proceedings papers). All manuscripts are thoroughly refereed through a single-blind peer-review process. A guide for authors and other relevant information for submission of manuscripts is available on the Instructions for Authors page. Genes is an international peer-reviewed open access monthly journal published by MDPI.

Please visit the Instructions for Authors page before submitting a manuscript. The Article Processing Charge (APC) for publication in this open access journal is 2600 CHF (Swiss Francs). Submitted papers should be well formatted and use good English. Authors may use MDPI's English editing service prior to publication or during author revisions.

Keywords

  • early embryo
  • preimplantation
  • zygotic genome activation
  • lineage specification
  • pluripotency
  • totipotency
  • trophectoderm
  • maternal factors
  • early embryo loss
  • vitrification

Published Papers (2 papers)

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Research

13 pages, 1254 KiB  
Article
Supplementation of EGF, IGF-1, and Connexin 37 in IVM Medium Significantly Improved the Maturation of Bovine Oocytes and Vitrification of Their IVF Blastocysts
by Sha Yang, Yuze Yang, Haisheng Hao, Weihua Du, Yunwei Pang, Shanjiang Zhao, Huiying Zou, Huabin Zhu, Peipei Zhang and Xueming Zhao
Genes 2022, 13(5), 805; https://doi.org/10.3390/genes13050805 - 30 Apr 2022
Cited by 12 | Viewed by 2142
Abstract
The quality and developmental capacity of oocytes derived from in vitro maturation (IVM) remain unsatisfactory, which greatly impairs the efficiency and application of embryo technologies. The present experiment was designed to investigate the effect of the supplementation of EGF, IGF-1, and Cx37 in [...] Read more.
The quality and developmental capacity of oocytes derived from in vitro maturation (IVM) remain unsatisfactory, which greatly impairs the efficiency and application of embryo technologies. The present experiment was designed to investigate the effect of the supplementation of EGF, IGF-1, and Cx37 in an IVM medium on the maturation quality and development ability of bovine oocytes. The cytoplasmic maturation events of oocytes and the quality of in vitro fertilization (IVF) blastocysts were examined to investigate the relative mechanisms. Our results showed that the nuclear maturation and blastocyst development after the IVF of oocytes treated with 25 μg/mL Cx37 or the combination of 50 ng/mL EGF and 100 ng/mL IGF-1 were significantly increased compared to those of the control group (p < 0.05). Furthermore, the blastocyst rate, and blastocyst total cell number and survival rate after vitrification of the EGF+IGF-1+Cx37 group, were significantly higher than those of the control group (p < 0.05), but lower than those of the FSH+LH+EGF+IGF-1+Cx37 group (p < 0.05). The transzonal projection (TZP) intensity, glutathione (GSH) level, and mitochondrial function of the EGF+IGF-1+Cx37 group were significantly higher than that of the control group, and lower than those of the FSH+LH+EGF+IGF-1+Cx37 group, in contrast to the results of the reactive oxygen species (ROS) levels. In conclusion, our results showed that the supplementation of 50 ng/mL EGF, 100 ng/mL IGF-1, and 25 μg/mL Cx37 in the IVM of bovine oocytes significantly improved their quality and developmental ability by increasing the TZP, mitochondrial function, and GSH level. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue Early Embryonic Development of Animals)
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15 pages, 4529 KiB  
Article
Single-Cell RNA-Seq Revealed the Gene Expression Pattern during the In Vitro Maturation of Donkey Oocytes
by Zhipeng Li, Xinhui Song, Shan Yin, Jiageng Yan, Peiru Lv, Huiquan Shan, Kuiqing Cui, Hongbo Liu and Qingyou Liu
Genes 2021, 12(10), 1640; https://doi.org/10.3390/genes12101640 - 19 Oct 2021
Cited by 7 | Viewed by 2403
Abstract
Donkeys are an important domesticated animal, providing labor, meat, milk, and medicinal materials for humans. However, the donkey population is continuously declining and even at risk of extinction. The application of modern animal production technology, such as oocyte in vitro maturation, is a [...] Read more.
Donkeys are an important domesticated animal, providing labor, meat, milk, and medicinal materials for humans. However, the donkey population is continuously declining and even at risk of extinction. The application of modern animal production technology, such as oocyte in vitro maturation, is a promising method to improve the donkey population. In this study, we explore the gene expression patterns of donkey germinal vesicle (GV) and in vitro matured metaphase II (MII) oocytes using single cell RNA-seq of the candidate genes along with the regulatory mechanisms that affect donkey oocyte maturation. We identified a total of 24,164 oocyte genes of which 9073 were significant differentially expressed in the GV and MII oocytes. Further Gene Ontology (GO) and Kyoto Encyclopedia of Genes and Genomes (KEGG) analysis indicated that these genes were associated with the meiotic cell cycle, mitochondrion activity, and N-glycan biosynthesis, which might be the key genes and regulatory mechanisms affecting the maturation of donkey oocytes. Our study provides considerable understanding regarding the maturation of donkey oocytes and serves as a theoretical basis for improving the development of donkey oocytes, which could ultimately benefit the expansion of the donkey population and conservation of biodiversity and genetic resources. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue Early Embryonic Development of Animals)
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