Anethole improves the developmental competence of porcine embryos by reducing oxidative stress via the sonic hedgehog signaling pathway

BackgroundAnethole (AN) is an organic antioxidant compound with a benzene ring and is expected to have a positive impact on early embryogenesis in mammals. However, no study has examined the effect of AN on porcine embryonic development. Therefore, we investigated the effect of AN on the development of porcine embryos and the underlying mechanism.ResultsWe cultured porcine in vitro-fertilized embryos in medium with AN (0, 0.3, 0.5, and 1 mg/mL) for 6 d. AN at 0.5 mg/mL significantly increased the blastocyst formation rate, trophectoderm cell number, and cellular survival rate compared to the control. AN-supplemented embryos exhibited significantly lower reactive oxygen species levels and higher glutathione levels than the control. Moreover, AN significantly improved the quantity of mitochondria and mitochondrial membrane potential, and increased the lipid droplet, fatty acid, and ATP levels. Interestingly, the levels of proteins and genes related to the sonic hedgehog (SHH) signaling pathway were significantly increased by AN.ConclusionsThese results revealed that AN improved the developmental competence of porcine preimplantation embryos by activating SHH signaling against oxidative stress and could be used for large-scale production of high-quality porcine embryos.

Automated summary

This study found that anethole (AN) has a positive impact on porcine embryonic development. It improves blastocyst formation rate, cell number, and survival rate, and activates the SHH signaling pathway against oxidative stress. These results suggest that AN could be used for large-scale production of high-quality porcine embryos.