The impact of the protein stabilizer octanoic acid on embryonic development and fetal growth in a murine model

Purpose The purpose of this study was to determine the effect of the protein stabilizer octanoic acid on blastocyst development, implantation, and fetal growth in a murine model. Methods One-cell mouse embryos were collected and individually cultured in medium supplemented with recombinant human serum albumin for 96 h at 5% oxygen in an EmbryoScope. Embryos were randomly allocated to four octanoic acid groups (0, 400, 800, or 1200 μM). Blastocyst development and cell cycle timings were calculated at 96 h of culture, and experiments were repeated in triplicate. Blastocysts were stained and fixed at 96 h for differential cell counts. Following 96 h of culture, blastocysts were transferred to recipients to determine implantation rates and fetal and placental weights. Results Blastocyst development, hatching rates, developmental kinetics, and total number of cells were negatively affected by octanoic acid at concentrations commonly used in human IVF. Implantation was not affected by octanoic acid but fetal and placental weights at 800 μMoctanoic acid were increased relative to control. Conclusions Octanoic acid, a standard additive to human protein supplements used in IVF, can have long-term negative effects onembryonic and fetal development. The use of octanoic acid for human embryo culture should be monitored and reduced.