The role of CDX2 in trophectoderm (TE) cells has been extensively studied, yet the results are contradictory and species specific. Here, CDX2 expression and function were explored in early porcine embryos. Notably, siRNA-mediated gene knockdown and lentivirus-mediated TE-specific gene regulation demonstrated that CDX2 is essential for the maintenance of blastocyst integrity by regulating the BM...

Mammalian preimplantation blastocysts exhibit insulin-stimulated glucose uptake despite the absence of the only known insulin-regulated transporter, GLUT4. We describe a previously unidentified member of the mammalian facilitative GLUT superfamily that exhibits approximately 20-25% identity with other murine facilitative GLUTs. Insulin induces a change in the intracellular localization of this ...

The mammalian blastocyst exhibits a high capacity for aerobic glycolysis, a metabolic characteristic of tumours. It has been considered that aerobic glycolysis is a means to ensure a high carbon flux to fulfil biosynthetic demands. Here, alternative explanations for this pattern of metabolism are considered. Lactate creates a microenvironment of low pH around the embryo to assist the disaggrega...

Cell death is a widespread feature in the blastocysts of many mammals. Isolated cells in both the inner cell mass and the trophectoderm undergo cell death. These dying cells appear morphologically to be undergoing apoptosis. In mouse blastocysts, a wave of cell death is seen in vivo, suggesting that it plays an important role in normal development. However, cell death is increased under subopti...

The mechanisms controlling the establishment of the embryonic-abembryonic (E-Ab) axis of the mammalian blastocyst are controversial. We used in vitro time-lapse imaging and in vivo lineage labeling to provide evidence that the E-Ab axis of the mouse blastocyst is generated independently of early cell lineage. Rather, both the boundary between two-cell blastomeres and the E-Ab axis of the blasto...

background: in the field of mammalian embryo culture, the putative influence of autocrine/ paracrine factor(s), produce by the embryos itself, is under investigation. a smaller medium drop can prevent dilution of this factor(s). objective: the objective of this study was to examine the effect of culture medium volume on in vitro development of mouse 2-cell embryos. materials and methods: the em...

The first intercellular differences during mammalian embryogenesis arise in the blastocyst, producing the inner cell mass and the trophectoderm. The trophectoderm is the first extraembryonic tissue and does not contribute to the embryo proper, its differentiation instead forming tissues that sustain embryonic development. Crucial roles in extraembryonic differentiation have been identified for ...