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Telomere lengths in human oocytes, cleavage stage embryos and blastocysts

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Turner, S., Wong, H. P., Rai, J. and Hartshorne, Geraldine M. (2010) Telomere lengths in human oocytes, cleavage stage embryos and blastocysts. Molecular Human Reproduction, Vol.16 (No.9). pp. 685-694. doi:10.1093/molehr/gaq048 ISSN 1360-9947.

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Official URL: http://dx.doi.org/10.1093/molehr/gaq048

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Abstract

Telomeres are repeated sequences that protect the ends of chromosomes and harbour DNA-repair proteins. Telomeres shorten during each cell division in the absence of telomerase. When telomere length becomes critically short, cell senescence occurs. Telomere length therefore reflects both cellular ageing and capacity for division. We have measured telomere length in human germinal vesicle (GV) oocytes and pre-implantation embryos, by quantitative fluorescence in-situ hybridisation (Q-FISH), providing baseline data towards our hypothesis that telomere length is a marker of embryo quality. The numbers of fluorescent foci suggest that extensive clustering of telomeres occurs in mature GV stage oocytes, and in pre-implantation embryos. When calculating average telomere length by assuming that each signal presents one telomere, the calculated telomere length decreased from the oocyte to the cleavage stages, and increased between the cleavage stages and the blastocyst (11.12 vs 8.43 vs 12.22kb respectively, p<0.001). Other methods of calculation, based upon expected maximum and minimum numbers of telomeres, confirm that telomere length in blastocysts is significantly longer than cleavage stages. Individual blastomeres within an embryo showed substantial variation in calculated average telomere length. This study implies that telomere length changes according to the stage of pre-implantation embryo development.

Item Type:

Journal Article

Subjects:

Q Science > QH Natural history
Q Science > QM Human anatomy

Divisions:

Faculty of Science, Engineering and Medicine > Medicine > Warwick Medical School > Biomedical Sciences > Translational & Experimental Medicine > Reproductive Health ( - until July 2016)
Faculty of Science, Engineering and Medicine > Medicine > Warwick Medical School

Library of Congress Subject Headings (LCSH):

Telomere, Ovum, Embryology, Human, Human embryo -- Transplantation, Cell division

Journal or Publication Title:

Molecular Human Reproduction

Publisher:

Oxford University Press