Alpha-lipoic acid reduces oxidative damage and ameliorates follicular abnormalities in vitrified cat ovarian tissue

TL;DR

Alpha-lipoic acid helps reduce damage from freezing cat ovarian tissue and improves follicle health.

Contribution

This study shows α-ALA mitigates vitrification-induced ovarian damage and reveals its effects at the transcriptomic level in cats.

Findings

α-ALA reduces oxidative stress and follicular abnormalities in vitrified ovarian tissue.

It enhances antioxidant capacity and delays fibrosis during in vitro culture.

Transcriptomic analysis reveals α-ALA's impact on vitrification-related ovarian function.

Abstract

Vitrification may induce oxidative damage, mitigating cryodamage is crucial for preserving follicular development and ovarian function. Alpha lipoic acid (α-ALA) is an antioxidant which exerts its antioxidant activity directly or indirectly.

In this study, we established a α-ALA concentration gradients (0, 100, and 150 μM) in the vitrification solution, assessed follicular abnormalities through hematoxylin and eosin (HE), analyzed cell apoptosis via TUNEL staining analysis, immunohistochemistry (IHC) and Masson staining, explored differential genes by transcriptome sequencing.

Our findings revealed that α-ALA alleviated oxidative stress damage and decreased follicular abnormalities induced by vitrification, enhanced antioxidant capacity and delayed the onset of fibrosis during in vitro culture. Moreover, our analysis revealed the effects of α-ALA on vitrification at the transcriptomic level.

In this study, we focused on the anti-apoptotic effects of α-ALA in cat ovarian cortex vitrification, and concluded that α-ALA effectively mitigates vitrification correlated ovarian functional impairment.

Flowchart illustrating the processing of ovarian fragments from an animal. Phase 1 and Phase 2 both involve the steps: Fresh or Vitrification. In Phase 1, Vitrification splits into VS only, VS + α-ALA (150 μM), and VS + α-ALA (150 mM), followed by Warming. In Phase 2, Vitrification includes VS only and VS + α-ALA (150 μM), leading to Warming or Warming with 150 μM α-ALA. Phases 2 end with Culture, with variations in α-ALA concentration.

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