Determination the Effects of Epidermal Growth Factor on Developmental Rates of Pre-Implantation Mouse Embryo

Purpose: To determine the effects of different doses of addition of exogenous epidermal growth factor (EGF) on development of pre-implantation mouse embryo. Materials and Methods: Mouse zygotes, two cell, 8 cell any morulae were collected from superovulated NMRI mice 24, 48, 64 and 80 hrs after hCG injection, respectively. The obtained embryos were cultured on medium alone, medium with 1, 4 and 10 ng/ml of EGF and recorded daily for 96 hrs. The blastulation and hatching rates of every group were compared statistically using Chi-square Test. Results: The results showed that exogenous EGF could not help zygotes to overcome on developmental block. Also, the cleavage rate to two cell stage of treated zygotes were lower than non-treated zygotes. The hatching rates of two cell embryos treated with different doses of EGF and non-treated were almost identical. The hatching rates of eight cell and morula embryos treated with 10 ng/ml of EGF were significantly higher than other doses and control embryos. Conclusion: Exogenous EGF can improve pre-implantation embryo development after eight cell stage but it can not affect the development of the stages before eight cell.