Succinate, lactate and glucose-6-phosphate dehydrogenases in meiotic arrested and in vitro matured bovine oocytes: a cytochemical approach

In vitro fertilization technique in domestic animals, particularly in the bovine, are mainly based on the possibility of successful in vitro culturing of meiotic arrested oocytes in order to obtain mataphase II oocytes competent to undergoing fertilization. If similar system could be estabilished for human oocyte development, it may become advantageous to discontinue the superstimulatory techniques currently in use in in vitro fertilization clinics. In this respect, substantial amount of informations exist on oocytes metabolic behaviour during growth and maturation in the mouse and rabbit indicating that oocytes metabolism is certainly different from that during somatic cell growth