The antioxidant betulinic acid enhances porcine oocyte maturation through Nrf2/Keap1 signaling pathway modulation.

ABSTRACT: During in vitro maturation, excess levels of reactive oxygen species (ROS) are a major cause of developmental defects in embryos. Betulinic acid (BA) is a naturally produced antioxidant in white birch bark. Recent studies have shown that BA exhibits antioxidant properties in various cells through the activation of antioxidant genes. Therefore, we investigated the effect of BA treatment on porcine oocytes and its underlying mechanism during oocyte maturation. Treatment with 0.1 μM BA significantly increased the proportion of MII oocytes compared with controls, and BA-treated oocytes had significantly higher development rates, trophectoderm cell numbers, and cell survival rates than controls. These results demonstrate that BA treatment improved the developmental competence of oocytes. Follow

SUBMITTER: Kim MJ 

PROVIDER: S-EPMC11466420 | biostudies-literature | 2024

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature