Post-partum viability of aggregates among in vivo fertilized embryo and parthenotes in mouse

• Grant number: 14/12586-2
• Support Opportunities: Scholarships in Brazil - Scientific Initiation
• Start date: October 01, 2014
• End date: September 30, 2015
• Field of knowledge: Biological Sciences - Morphology - Embryology
• Principal Investigator: Marcelo Fábio Gouveia Nogueira
• Grantee: Bruna Martins Garcia
• Host Institution: Faculdade de Ciências e Letras (FCL-ASSIS). Universidade Estadual Paulista (UNESP). Campus de Assis. Assis , SP, Brazil

Abstract

Chimeras from in vivo fertilized cells and parthenogenetic cells have been subject of study to the use on the biotechnology of reproduction. Mouse parthenotes do not undergo a full development but when they are aggregated with fertilized embryos the development is feasible. However, the parthenogenetic cells actively affect the development and the growth of the embryo and the future newborn. The aim with this work was evaluate the post-partum viability of chimeras produced by aggregation of one in vivo fertilized embryo (C57BL/6 EGFP strain) with two parthenogenetically activated embryos (Swiss Webster strain). Mouse embryos in pre-implantation stages will be their zona pellucida removed, will be treated with an agent to agglutination and they will be approximated to each other inside a microwell (WoW system) to allow the aggregation by cell-to-cell contact. The clusters to be aggregated will be incubated during 48 hours when the stage of blastocyst could be detected. To the aggregation and the cell localization evaluations the fluorescence from EGFP strain cells will be used as marker. The embryos that contain parthenogenetic cells into inner cell mass will be transferred to pseudopregnant recipients. The newborns will be measured and the average weight, birth rate, post-partum death, parthenogenetic cells in the coat color rate and, if possible, the reproductive behavior of the obtained adult chimeras.