Cytoplasmic extracts of meiotically mature mouse oocytes were injected into immature Xenopus laevis oocytes, which underwent germinal vesicle breakdown within 2 h. Germinal vesicle breakdown was not inhibited by incubation of the Xenopus oocytes in cycloheximide (20 micrograms/ml). Identically prepared extracts of meiotically immature mouse oocytes, arrested at the germinal vesicle stage by dib...

developing a culture system for preantral follicles has important biotechnological implications due to the potential to produce a large number of oocytes for embryo production and transfer. to accomplish this goal, the present study was aimed to culture preantral follicles in the presence of different media, sera and fsh concentrations. six-week-old preantral follicles (95 ± 5 µm) were cultured...

Various stages of immature human oocytes were imaged for microtubule, microfilament and chromatin organization. After germinal vesicle breakdown, a small microtubule aster was observed near the condensed chromatin. The asters appeared to elongate and encompass the condensed chromatin. At metaphase I stage, microtubules were detected in the meiotic spindle. The meiotic spindle in metaphase II wa...

In the present study, a total of 595 specimens collected monthly in the northern part of Persian Gulf between November 2006 and October 2007 were examined by routine macroscopic and histological techniques. Monthly changes in the gonadosomatic index showed the spawning season extended within 2 peaks, from April- May and September. The maturity stages are morphologically separated according to t...

Meiotic reinitiation of the mouse oocyte is characterized by a slow entry into metaphase I, beginning with germinal vesicle breakdown and ending with spindle formation. It is accompanied by a cascade of protein kinases and phosphatases increasing protein phosphorylation. The activation of histone H1 kinase and that of the mitogen-activated protein kinase p42 have been compared during spontaneou...

rate of in vitro maturation of oocytes is one of the challenges of assisted reproductive techniques. in this study we investigated the effects of supplementation of cysteamine on the rate of in vitro maturation of oocytes in two different media. germinal vesicle oocytes were collected from mouse ovary and cultured in two media (tcm199 and meme) with 0, 50, 100, 200, 500 µm/ml cysteamine. number...

In order to determine the most effective hormones on the in vitro oocyte maturation (germinal vesicle breakdown GVBD) in a hybrid sturgeon bester, ovarian follicles were incubated at the migratory nucleus stage in the presence of several steroids, gonadotropin preparations and forskolin. Occurrence of GVBD and 17,20β-dihydroxy-4-pregnen-3 -one (DHP) production were followed during an experiment...

BACKGROUND To better understand the differences between in vivo (IVO) and in vitro (IVM) matured oocytes, we studied the chronological changes in cortical granule (CG) distribution and nuclear progression during maturation, and the competence of CG release and embryo development of mouse oocytes matured under different conditions. METHODS Oocytes matured in vivo or in different culture media ...

To determine the effect of gonadal feedback on plasma GTH level, female rainbow trout were ovariectomized at three stages at the end of the reproductive cycle: at the end of vitellogenesis, during germinal vesicle migration and during the post-ovulatory period. A group of controls and one of castrates in each experiment were given an injection of physiological salt solution, and a third group o...