Administration of the mTOR Activator MHY1485 Does Not Impede the Developmental Processes After Fertilization

Abstract

Mammalian target of rapamycin (mTOR) regulates numerous cellular processes such as survival, apoptosis, and autophagy. The mTOR signaling has been studied in different cells, but its role during the development of embryos is unclear. Here, we inspected the impact of MHY1485, a specific mTOR activator, treatment post-fertilization, on the developmental capacity of bovine pre-implantation embryos. The initial results of microscopic investigations showed high cleavage and day-8 blastocyst development rates following the incubation of presumptive zygotes with MHY1485. Additionally, the administration of mTOR activator did not increase, but rather decreased, the reactive oxygen species (ROS; p < 0.05) and apoptotic DNA fragmentation (p > 0.05) in the developing embryos. The RT-qPCR did not show any up-regulation of the apoptosis-related gene caspase 3 upon addition of MHY1485. Using immunofluorescence, high levels of PI3K (p < 0.05) and low levels of caspase 3 (p > 0.05) were observed in MHY1485-treated embryos. To conclude, mTOR activation post-fertilization does not hinder, but could boost, the development of pre-implantation embryos. This paves the way for more in-depth studies to elucidate the role of mTOR signaling throughout the different embryonic stages. © 2024 National Information and Documentation Center.