IN-VITRO ENHANCEMENT OF MOUSE EMBRYONIC-DEVELOPMENT BY COCULTURE WITHPERITONEAL-MACROPHAGES

The effects of peritoneal macrophages on mouse fertilization and embry onic development in vitro were examined by a co-culture method. In exp eriment 1, oocytes from F-1 strain mice were inseminated and cultured with a monolayer of peritoneal macrophages to determine the effects of the macrophages on fertilization. In experiment 2, 1-cell embryos, fe rtilized in vivo from either a non-blocking or a blocking strain, were also incubated with peritoneal macrophages to determine whether these cells overcame the developmental arrest. Although the peritoneal macr ophages had an adverse effect on fertilization in the F-1 strain, embr yonic development was significantly improved by the co-culture. This b eneficial effect on embryonic development was also observed in the emb ryos fertilized in vivo from the strain that exhibited a 2-cell block. These results suggest that peritoneal macrophages provide an effectiv e co-culture system for the in-vitro development of mouse embryos.