Human Reproduction, Vol. 15, No. 1, 180-188,
January 2000
© 2000 European Society of Human Reproduction and Embryology
Preimplantation embryo morphology following early luteal phase anti-nidatory treatment with mifepristone (RU486) in the rhesus monkey
1 Department of Physiology, All India Institute of Medical Sciences, New Delhi 110029, India and 2 California Regional Primate Research Center, University of California, Davis, CA 95616, USA
The ultrastructural characteristics of peri-implantation stage embryos recovered on day 6 after ovulation from rhesus monkeys with or without mifepristone (RU486) treatment during the early luteal phase were examined in the present study. Monkeys were randomly allocated to two groups; group 1 animals were injected s.c. with 2 ml vehicle (1:4, benzyl benzoate: olive oil, v/v, n = 21) and group 2 animals received a single dose of mifepristone (2 mg/kg body weight, w/v, n = 30) in the same volume of vehicle on day 2 after ovulation in mated cycles. On day 6 after ovulation, female monkeys of both groups were laparotomized and their reproductive tracts were flushed to retrieve preimplantation stage embryos. Embryos that showed frank degeneration or desynchrony on gross microscopical examination were not included in the present study. Preimplantation embryo growth on day 6 after ovulation was significantly (P < 0.05) affected in the morula–blastocyst transition stage in mifepristone-treated monkeys compared with that in the control group of monkeys. Ultrastructurally, administration of mifepristone on day 2 after ovulation depressed preimplantation stage embryo development, characterized by loss of cell polarity, lack of mitochondrial maturity, and lack of differentiation in trophoblast cells. Furthermore, preimplantation embryos from mifepristone-treated animals displayed a higher occurrence of inter-blastomere space, intra-cytoplasmic vacuoles, myelinoid bodies, accumulation of lipid droplets, lysosomes, lipofuscins, autophagosomes and multivesicular bodies. Collectively, it appears that the developmental potential of preimplantation embryos was significantly compromised in mifepristone-treated cycles.
Key words: blastocyst/inner cell mass/mifepristone/morula/trophoblast
3 To whom correspondence should be addressed
CiteULike 
Connotea 
Del.icio.us What's this?
This article has been cited by other articles:
|
|
 |
|
  J. Sengupta, L. Dhawan, P G L Lalitkumar, and D Ghosh Nitric oxide in blastocyst implantation in the rhesus monkey Reproduction, September 1, 2005; 130(3): 321 - 332. [Abstract] [Full Text] [PDF]
|
|
|
|
|
|
P. Lalitkumar, J Sengupta, and D Ghosh Endometrial tumor necrosis factor {alpha} (TNF{alpha}) is a likely mediator of early luteal phase mifepristone-mediated negative effector action on the preimplantation embryo Reproduction, March 1, 2005; 129(3): 323 - 335. [Abstract] [Full Text] [PDF]
|
|
|
|
 |
|
 H.Z. Li, X. Sun, A. Stavreus-Evers, and K. Gemzell-Danielsson Effect of mifepristone on the expression of cytokines in the human Fallopian tube Mol. Hum. Reprod., July 1, 2004; 10(7): 489 - 493. [Abstract] [Full Text] [PDF]
|
|
|
|
 |
|
 K.D. Nusser, S. Mitalipov, A. Widmann, B. Gerami-Naini, R.R. Yeoman, and D.P. Wolf Developmental competence of oocytes after ICSI in the rhesus monkey Hum. Reprod., January 1, 2001; 16(1): 130 - 137. [Abstract] [Full Text] [PDF]
|
|