Elena Ibáñez

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Verified

Elena verified their affiliation via an institutional email.

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• PhD in Cell Biology
• Associate Professor at Autonomous University of Barcelona

Purpose Oocytes from women presenting primary ovarian insufficiency (POI) generate viable embryos at a lower rate than non-POI women, but the mechanisms responsible for the lower oocyte quality remain elusive. Due to the scarcity of human oocytes for research, animal models provide a promising way forward. We aimed at investigating the molecular ev...

With the progressive aging of the population, bone fractures are an increasing major health concern. Diverse strategies are being studied to reduce the recovery times using nonaggressive treatments. Electrical stimulation (either endogenous or externally applied electric pulses) has been found to be effective in accelerating bone cell proliferation...

Embryonic stem cell (ESC) derivation from single blastomeres of 8-cell mouse embryos results in lower derivation rates than that from whole blastocysts, raising a biological question about the developmental potential of sister blastomeres. We aimed to assess the ability of 8-cell blastomeres to produce epiblast cells and ESC lines after isolation,...

Study question Is there a relationship between poor mitochondrial metabolism and impaired meiotic progression of germinal vesicle (GVs) oocytes in women of advanced maternal age (AMA)? Summary answer Poor mitochondrial metabolism impairs meiotic progression in human oocytes, contributing to a lower oocyte maturation capacity in women of AMA. What...

Human meiosis in oocytes entails an intricate regulation of the transcriptome to support late oocyte growth and early embryo development, both crucial to reproductive success. Currently, little is known about the co- and post-transcriptional mRNA processing mechanisms regulating the last meiotic phases, which contribute to transcriptome complexity...

Commercially available titanium alloys such as Ti-6Al-4V are established in clinical use as load-bearing bone implant materials. However, concerns about the toxic effects of vanadium and aluminum have prompted the development of Al- and V-free β-Ti alloys. Herein, a new alloy composed of non-toxic elements, namely Ti-18Mo-6Nb-5Ta (wt%), has been fa...

In this work, porous FeMn(–xAg) alloys are fabricated through powder metallurgy methods. The effects of porosity and Ag addition on the microstructure, biodegradability, magnetic and mechanical properties of the alloys are investigated. Studies on the cytocompatibility, inflammatory cytokine response and antibacterial effect are also conducted. The...

Study question Could a decreased mitochondrial metabolism explain the lower oocyte meiotic progression competence observed in advanced maternal age (AMA) oocytes? Summary answer Inhibition of mitochondrial activity in young oocytes mirrors the phenotype of AMA oocytes, pointing to a causative link between effective mitochondrial metabolism and mei...

Study question Is there a specific splicing of transcripts associated with the progression through meiosis in human oocytes? Summary answer Single oocyte mRNA sequencing (scRNA-seq) reveals that several meiosis- and spindle-associated genes are specifically spliced during final meiotic maturation. What is known already Final meiotic maturation in...

Context Derivation of embryonic stem cells (ESC) from single blastomeres is an interesting alternative to the use of whole blastocysts, but derivation rates are lower and the requirements for successful ESC obtention are still poorly defined. Aims To investigate the effects of embryo cryopreservation and of signalling modulators present during emb...

Nanogenerators are interesting for biomedical applications, with a great potential for electrical stimulation of excitable cells. Piezoelectric ZnO nanosheets present unique properties for tissue engineering. In this study, nanogenerator arrays based on ZnO nanosheets are fabricated on transparent coverslips to analyse the biocompatibility and the...

A Ti-based alloy (Ti45Zr15Pd30Si5Nb5) with already proven excellent mechanical and biocompatibility features has been coated with piezoelectric zinc oxide (ZnO) to induce the electrical self-stimulation of cells. ZnO was grown onto the pristine alloy in two different morphologies: a flat dense film and an array of nanosheets. The effect of the comb...

Three-dimensional porous scaffolds offer some advantages over conventional treatments for bone tissue engineering. Amongst all non-bioresorbable scaffolds, biocompatible metallic scaffolds are preferred over ceramic and polymeric scaffolds, as they can be used as electrodes with different electric field intensities (or voltages) for electric stimul...

PurposeThis study aimed to determine the role of Wnt pathway in mouse embryonic stem cell (mESC) derivation from single blastomeres isolated from eight-cell embryos and in the pluripotency features of the mESC established.Methods Wnt activator CHIR99021, Wnt inhibitor IWR-1-endo, and MEK inhibitor PD0325901 were used alone or in combination during...

Biomimetic functional scaffolds for tissue engineering should fulfil specific requirements concerning structural, bio-chemical and electro-mechanical characteristics, depending on the tissue that they are designed to resemble. In bone tissue engineering, piezoelectric materials based on poly(vinylidene fluoride) (PVDF) are on the forefront, due to...

Purpose: To determine if the specific targeting of microparticles improves their internalization by cells under fluidic conditions. Methods: Two isogenic breast epithelial cell lines, one overexpressing the Human Epidermal Growth Factor Receptor 2 (HER2) oncogene (D492HER2) and highly tumorigenic and the other expressing HER2 at much lower levels a...

Purpose To assess the role of the genetic background, the culture medium supplements, and the presence of modulators of signaling pathways on mouse embryonic stem cell derivation from single blastomeres from 8-cell embryos. Methods Mice from permissive and non-permissive genetic backgrounds, different culture media supplements, knockout serum repl...

Therapeutic drug carriers can drive their cargo to their target cells. However, an obstacle is usually the entrapment of the drug inside the endolysosomal compartment, which physically impedes its actuation by the impossibility of reaching its molecular site of action. To overcome this hurdle, photochemical internalization (PCI) has been proposed,...

Electrical stimulation may influence cell behavior associated with proliferation, differentiation, and migration, among others. The need for electrical tools to interact with living cells has pushed the technology to progressively develop less invasive devices. Technologies like energy harvesting have enabled wireless biological applications. Here...

Metallic alloys have been widely used for orthopedic implants since the beginning of the last century. Compared to ceramics and polymers, metallic alloys present excellent mechanical properties and biocompatibility. In this chapter, we review the different in vitro assays currently used to test the biocompatibility of new materials designed to be u...

Mouse embryonic stem cell (mESC) derivation is the process by which pluripotent cell lines are established from preimplantation embryos. These lines retain the ability to either self-renew or differentiate under specific conditions. Due to these properties, mESC are a useful tool in regenerative medicine, disease modeling, and tissue engineering st...

Porous Fe-30Mn6Si1Pd (wt.%) alloys were prepared by a simple press and sinter process from ball-milled Fe, Mn, Si and Pd powders blended with 10 wt%, 20 wt% and 40 wt% NaCl to obtain different degrees of porosity. For comparison purposes, a bulk fully-compact Fe-30Mn6Si1Pd alloy was produced by arc-melting and subsequent copper-mold suction-casting...

Pure Fe and FeMnSi thin films were sputtered on macroporous polypropylene (PP) membranes with the aim to obtain biocompatible, biodegradable and, eventually, magnetically-steerable platforms. Room-temperature ferromagnetic response was observed in both Fe-and FeMnSi-coated membranes. Good cell viability was observed in both cases by means of cytoto...

Saos-2 cells are cultured on top of piezoelectric nanogenerators (NGs) based on ZnO nanosheets for electrical self-stimulation by Gonzalo Murillo, Carme Nogués, and co-workers in article number 1605048. Imaging by scanning electron microscopy (SEM) shows that the cells are firmly adhered to the nanosheets. The cells show excellent viability, prolif...

Remote microactuators are of great interest in biology and medicine as minimally-invasive tools for cellular stimulation. Remote actuation can be achieved by active magnetostrictive transducers which are capable of changing shape in response to external magnetic fields thereby creating controlled displacements. Among the magnetostrictive materials,...

Ti-based alloys have increased importance for biomedical applications due to their excellent properties. In particular, the two recently developed TiZrPdSi(Nb) alloys, with a predominant β-Ti phase microstructure, have good mechanical properties, such as a relatively low Young's modulus and high hardness. In the present work, the cytocompatibility...

Noninvasive methods for in situ electrical stimulation of human cells open new frontiers to future bioelectronic therapies, where controlled electrical impulses could replace the use of chemical drugs for disease treatment. Here, this study demonstrates that the interaction of living cells with piezoelectric nanogenerators (NGs) induces a local ele...

Cell death triggered by photodynamic therapy can occur through different mechanisms: apoptosis, necrosis or autophagy. However, recent studies have demonstrated the existence of other mechanisms with characteristics of both necrosis and apoptosis. These new cell death pathways, collectively termed regulated necrosis, include a variety of processes...

Triclabendazole (TCBZ) is a veterinary drug used against Fasciola hepatica in cattle. The Cajamarca Valley in Peru is an endemic area of fascioliasis with a high infection rate in animals producing milk for human consumption. The administration of TCBZ during the lactating period can lead to TCBZ derivative residues in milk and cheese entering the...

Two new Fe-based alloys, Fe-10Mn6Si1Pd and Fe-30Mn6Si1Pd, have been fabricated by arc-melting followed by copper mold suction casting. The Fe-30Mn6Si1Pd alloy mainly consists of epsilon-martensite and gamma-austenite Fe-rich phases whereas the Fe-10Mn6Si1Pd alloy primarily contains the alpha-Fe(Mn)-ferrite phase. Additionally, Pd-rich precipitates...

The use of biocompatible materials, including bulk metallic glasses (BMGs), for tissue regeneration and transplantation is increasing. The good mechanical and corrosion properties of Ti40Zr10Cu38Pd12 BMG and its previously described biocompatibility makes it a potential candidate for medical applications. However, it is known that surface propertie...

The development of micro- and nanosystems for their use in biomedicine is a continuously growing field. One of the major goals of such platforms is to combine multiple functions in a single entity. However, achieving the design of an efficient and safe micro- or nanoplatform has shown to be strongly influenced by its interaction with the biological...

Time-lapse monitoring of somatic cell nuclear transfer (SCNT) embryos may help to predict developmental success and increase birth and embryonic stem cells (ESC) derivation rates. Here, the development of intracytoplasmic sperm injection (ICSI) fertilized embryos and of SCNT embryos, non-treated or treated with either psammaplin A (PsA) or vitamin...

The use of micro- and nanodevices as multifunctional systems for biomedical applications has experienced an exponential growth during the past decades. Although a large number of studies have focused on the design and fabrication of new micro- and nanosystems capable of developing multiple functions, a deeper understanding of their interaction with...

The increasing number of patients undergoing assisted reproductive technology (ART) treatments and of cycles performed in fertility centres has led to some traceability errors. Although the incidence of mismatching errors is extremely low, any error is unacceptable, therefore different strategies have been developed to further minimize these errors...

Background: Fascioliasis and paragonimiasis are widespread foodborne trematode diseases, affecting millions of people in more than 75 countries. The treatment of choice for these parasitic diseases is based on triclabendazole, a benzimidazole derivative which has been suggested as a promising drug to treat pregnant women and children. However, at...

Impaired development of embryos produced by somatic cell nuclear transfer (SCNT) is mostly associated with faulty reprogramming of the somatic nucleus to a totipotent state and can be improved by treatment with epigenetic modifiers. Here we report that addition of 100 μM vitamin C (VitC) to embryo culture medium for at least 16 h post-activation si...

The adhesion of small silicon chips to cells has many potential applications as direct interconnection of the cells to the external world can be accomplished. Hence, although some typical applications of silicon nanowires integrated in microsystems are focused on achieving a Cell-on-a-Chip strategy, we are interested in obtaining Chip-on-a-Cell sys...

The microstructure, mechanical behaviour, and biocompatibility (cell culture, morphology, and cell adhesion) of nanostructured Ti45Zr15Pd35-xSi5Nbx with x = 0, 5 (at. %) alloys, synthesized by arc melting and subsequent Cu mould suction casting, in the form of rods with 3 mm in diameter, are investigated. Both Ti-Zr-Pd-Si-(Nb) materials show a mult...

Faulty reprogramming of the donor somatic nucleus to a totipotent embryonic state by the recipient oocyte is a major obstacle for cloning success. Accordingly, treatment of cloned embryos with epigenetic modifiers, such as histone deacetylase inhibitors (HDACi), enhances cloning efficiency. The purpose of our study was to further explore the potent...

The low number of oocytes collected from unstimulated donors by ovum pick-up means that embryos produced from each individual female have to be cultured individually or in very small groups. However, it has been demonstrated that single-embryo culture is less efficient than embryo culture in groups. To overcome this limitation, we developed a direc...

Is the attachment of biofunctionalized polysilicon barcodes to the outer surface of the zona pellucida an effective approach for the direct tagging and identification of human oocytes and embryos during assisted reproduction technologies (ARTs)? The direct tagging system based on lectin-biofunctionalized polysilicon barcodes of micrometric dimensio...

The synthesis and characterization of Ti40Zr20Hf20Fe20 (atom %) alloy, in the form of rods (ϕ = 2 mm), prepared by arc-melting, and subsequent Cu mold suction casting, is presented. The microstructure, mechanical and corrosion properties, as well as in vitro biocompatibility of this alloy, are investigated. This material consists of a mixture of se...

The use of biocompatible materials has attained an increasing importance for tissue regeneration and transplantation. The excellent mechanical and corrosion properties of Ti40Cu38Zr10Pd12 bulk metallic glass (BMG) turn it into a potential candidate for its use in orthopaedic implants. Before being considered as a biomaterial, some biological parame...

Individual tagging of oocytes and embryos through the attachment of micrometer-sized polysilicon barcodes to their zona pellucida (ZP) is a promising approach to ensure their correct identification and traceability in human assisted reproduction and in animal production programs. To provide barcodes with the capacity of binding to the ZP, they must...

Study question: Is the attachment of biofunctionalized polysilicon barcodes to the outer surface of the zona pellucida an effective approach for the direct tagging and identification of cultured embryos? Summary answer: The results achieved provide a proof of concept for a direct embryo tagging system using biofunctionalized polysilicon barcodes...

The evolution of microstructure and mechanical properties of almost fully amorphous Mg(72) Zn(23) Ca(5) and crystalline Mg(70) Zn(23) Ca(5) Pd(2) alloys during immersion in Hank's balanced salt solution (HBSS), as well as their cytocompatibility, are investigated in order to assess the feasibility of both materials as biodegradable implants. Though...

Among the different techniques available to evaluate blastocyst quality, the most frequently used are those that allow the counting of the number of cells of the two distinct cell lineages present at this stage (trophectoderm or TE and inner cell mass or ICM), through differential staining. The goal of this study was to compare three different meth...

In the last decade, the applicability of focus ion beam-field emission scanning electron microscopy (FIB-FESEM) in the biological field has begun to get relevance. Among the possibilities offered by FIB-FESEM, high-resolution three-dimensional (3D) reconstruction of biological structures is one of the most interesting. Using this tool, the 3D poros...

A rapid cancer cell detection and quantification assay, based on the electrocatalytic properties of gold nanoparticles towards the hydrogen evolution reaction, is described. The selective labeling of cancer cells is performed in suspension, allowing a fast interaction between the gold nanoparticle labels and the target proteins expressed at the cel...

Among the many biological and technical factors affecting the success rate of mouse somatic cell nuclear transfer (SCNT), faulty reprogramming of the differentiated donor nucleus to a totipotent embryonic state by the recipient oocyte seems key. Accordingly, treatment of SCNT embryos with epigenetic modifiers such as valproic acid (VPA), a histone...

The low number of oocytes collected from unstimulated donors by ovum pick-up means that embryos produced from each female have to be cultured in very small groups. Because embryo quality and development rates are reduced in individual and small group culture, several methods to culture embryos individually but sharing the same medium have been desi...

Cell tracking is an emergent area in nanobiotechnology, promising the study of individual cells or the identification of populations of cultured cells. In our approach to it, microtools designed for extracellular tagging are prepared, because using biofunctionalized polysilicon barcodes to tag cell membranes externally avoids the inconveniences of...

Development of micro- and nanotechnology for the study of living cells, especially in the field of drug delivery, has gained interest in recent years. Although several studies have reported successful results in the internalization of micro- and nanoparticles in phagocytic cells, when nonphagocytic cells are used, the low internalization efficiency...

Here we present a new strategy for a simple and fast detection of cancer circulating cells (CTCs) using nanoparticles. The human colon adenocarcinoma cell line (Caco2) was chosen as a model CTC. Similarly to other adenocarcinomas, colon adenocarcinoma cells have a strong expression of EpCAM, and for this reason this glycoprotein was used as the cap...

The influence of partial substitution of Mg by Pd on the microstructure, mechanical properties and corrosion behaviour of Mg(72-x)Zn(23)Ca(5)Pd(x) (x=0, 2 and 6 at.%) alloys, synthesized by copper mould casting, is investigated. While the Mg(72)Zn(23)Ca(5) alloy is mainly amorphous, the addition of Pd decreases the glass-forming ability, thus favou...

The first event of differentiation in mammalian embryogenesis is the segregation of the inner cell mass and trophectoderm lineages in the blastocyst. Cellular and molecular events related to this process are still a controversial issue. During the years it was thought that first allocation of blastomeres before the blastocyst stage was done in the...

In this work, two types of polycrystalline silicon (polysilicon) microparticles were modified with specific ligands in order to be selectively attached to chemical residues located at the plasma membrane and thus to be applied to study individual cells in culture. Two different functionalization approaches based on adsorption and covalent attachmen...

Mouse recipient cytoplasts for somatic cell nuclear transfer (SCNT) are routinely prepared by mechanical enucleation (ME), an invasive procedure that requires expensive equipment and considerable micromanipulation skills. Alternatively, oocytes can be enucleated using chemically assisted (AE) or chemically induced (IE) enucleation methods that are...

Single cell labeling and tracking is an interesting field in cell biology. The growing development of small barcodes will allow studies at single cell behavior under optical microscopes. These codes have to fulfill special biological, optical and fabrication requirements. Nowadays, silicon microtechnologies advances allow fabricated structures at s...

the aim of the present study is to compare three previously described mouse embryonic stem cell derivation methods to evaluate the influence of culture conditions, number of isolated blastomeres and embryonic stage in the derivation process. three embryonic stem cell derivation methods: standard, pre-adhesion and defined culture medium method, were...

Efforts to efficiently derive embryonic stem cells (ESC) from isolated blastomeres have been done to minimize ethical concerns about human embryo destruction. Previous studies in our laboratory indicated a poor derivation efficiency of mouse ESC lines from isolated blastomeres at the 8-cell stage (1/8 blastomeres) due, in part, to a low division ra...

Treatment of pre-activated oocytes with demecolcine (DEM) has been shown to induce the extrusion of all oocyte chromosomes within the second polar body (PB2). However, induced enucleation (IE) rates are generally low and the competence of these cytoplasts to support embryonic development following somatic cell nuclear transfer (SCNT) is impaired. H...

Measures to prevent assisted reproductive technologies (ART) mix-ups, such as labeling of all labware and double-witnessing protocols, are currently in place in fertility clinics worldwide. Technological solutions for electronic witnessing are also being developed. However, none of these solutions eliminate the risk of identification errors, becaus...

Reprogramming of differentiated nuclei into a totipotent embryonic state following somatic cell nuclear transfer (SCNT) is not efficient. Previous studies in the hybrid B6D2F1 mouse strain revealed that a transient treatment of the SCNT embryos with the histone deacetylase inhibitor (HDACi) trichostatin A (TSA) significantly enhance the potential o...

Microchips can be fabricated, using semiconductor technologies, at microscopic level to be introduced into living cells for monitoring of intracellular parameters at a single cell level. As a first step towards intracellular chips development, silicon and polysilicon microparticles of controlled shape and dimensions were fabricated and introduced i...

Cell handling is currently hindered by rudimentary-manufactured manipulators. Restrictive designs of glass pipettes and other micromanipulators limit functionality and often damage cells, ultimately resulting in lysis. We present a novel technique to design and mill conventional glass pipettes at specifically chosen angles and geometries. Focus ion...

This paper reports the fabrication of silicon microdevices featuring silicon nanowires as nanoscale attachment elements to increase their adhesion capability. These nanoattachment elements are bio-inspired in small animals like geckos that can exhibit high adhesion forces due to their nanostructured feet. The adhesion of small silicon chips to inor...

The development of in vitro reproduction techniques has presented a great concern about the identification of the embryos. In this work, we report the use of a novel barcode branding based on polysilicon and silicon structures for embryo labeling. Four different barcodes types were fabricated based on standard semiconductor techniques and the label...

During the past decade, diverse types of barcode have been designed in order to track living cells in vivo or in vitro, but none of them offer the possibility to follow an individual cell up to ten or more days. Using silicon microtechnologies a barcode sufficiently small to be introduced into a cell, yet visible and readily identifiable under an o...

Single cell labelling and tracking is growing interest in cell biology. The development of small barcodes will allow to investigate single cell behaviour under optical microscopes. These codes have to fulfill special biological, optical and fabrication requirements. Nowadays, silicon microtechnologies allow to fabricate small structures. In this pa...

Dispositivo intracelular para el estudio de parámetros intracelulares en células, órganos y tejidos. Esta invención se refiere al diseño y fabricación de un micronano dispositivo sensor de reducido tamaño (en el rango del micrómetro, 10-6 metros al nanómetro, 10-9 metros), el cual es introducible mediante procedimiento conocido, en células aisladas...

Chemically assisted enucleation has been successfully applied to porcine and bovine oocytes to prepare recipient cytoplasts for nuclear transfer procedures. In this study, the antimitotic drugs demecolcine, nocodazole, and vinblastine were first assessed for their ability to induce the formation of cortical membrane protrusions in mouse, goat, and...

Sharpened cantilevered nozzles were fabricated combining microsystem technologies and focused ion beam micromachining. Micronozzles consist of silicon chips with silicon oxide microchannels whose micronozzles were reshaped using Focused Ion Beam. Micronozzle body was defined by an aluminum sacrificial layer patterned over a silicon wafer. This laye...

Embryos and oocytes were first successfully cryopreserved more than 30 years ago, when Whittingham et al. and Wilmut separately described that mouse embryos could be frozen and stored at -196 degrees C and, a few years later, Parkening et al. reported the birth of live offspring resulting from in vitro fertilization (IVF) of cryopreserved oocytes....

Chemically-assisted (AE) and chemically induced (IE) enucleation using demecolcine (DEM) or nocodazole (NOC) have proven to be technically simple procedures to prepare developmentally competent cytoplasts for nuclear transfer (NT) in different species. In this study, we analyzed AE and IE in mouse oocytes in terms of enucleation efficiency, amount...

La derivació de cèl·lules mare embrionàries (ESC) s'ha fet tradicionalment a partir de la massa cel·lular interna (ICM) de l'embrió en estadi de blastocist. Però aquesta estratègia, que comporta la destrucció de l'embrió, ha generat un intens debat ètic en el cas de l'espècie humana. En aquest sentit, diferents grups han intentat establir ESC a par...

Demecolcine-induced enucleation has been previously used to prepare developmentally competent enucleated mouse and bovine cytoplasts for nuclear transfer (Gasparrini et al. 2003 Biol. Reprod. 68, 1259–1266; Fischer-Russell et al. 2005 Mol. Reprod. Dev. 72, 161–170). The approach is technically simple, but the proportion of pre-activated oocytes tha...

In this article, we describe the use of a caprine beta-lactoglobulin (betaLG) expression cassette previously obtained by our group to target the expression of the human follicle-stimulating hormone (hFSH) to the mammary gland of transgenic mice. The hFSH is a pituitary glycoprotein composed of two subunits (alpha and beta). At present, this protein...

Oocyte enucleation is a key step in mammalian cloning by nuclear transfer. Traditional mechanical enucleation, although efficient, is technically demanding and clearly damaging to the oocyte. Alternatively, oocytes can be chemically enucleated. Treatment of metaphase II oocytes with antimitotic agents induces the formation of a cortical protrusion...

The interplay between genetic and epigenetic factors plays a central role in mammalian embryo production strategies that superimpose ex vivo or in vivo manipulations upon strain background characteristics. In this study, we examined the relationship between genetic background and the phenotypic properties of mouse metaphase-II (M-II) oocytes that w...

Demecolcine-induced enucleation (IE) of mouse oocytes has been shown to improve development to term of cloned mice. In this study, we characterized the kinetics and morphological progression of bovine oocytes subjected to IE, and evaluated their ability to support embryo development to the blastocyst stage after nuclear transfer (NT). In vitro matu...

With the aim of investigating the effects of oocyte genotype and activating stimulus on the timing of nuclear events after activation, oocytes collected from hybrid B6D2F1, inbred C57BL/6 and outbred CF-1 and immunodeficient nude (NU/+) females were activated using ethanol or strontium and fixed at various time-points. Meiotic status, spindle rotat...

In this paper, we describe a rapid and accurate real-time quantitative PCR-based system to determine transgene copy number in transgenic animals. We used the 2(-deltadeltaCt) method to analyze different transgenic lines without the requirement of a control sample previously determined by Southern blot analysis. To determine the transgene copy numbe...

A recessive insertional mutation was identified in one line of transgenic mice for the caprine beta-lactoglobulin (betaLG) gene. High mortality after birth, a significant reduction in postnatal growth and adult body size, changes in the morphometric features of the head, and infertility are the most prominent phenotypic traits of the mutant animals...

Parthenogenetic activation of mammalian oocytes can be induced by several stimuli in vitro. In the mouse, ethanol and Sr²⁺ are commonly used artificial activating agents. The aim of this study was to investigate both the effects of these two activating agents and the genetic background of the oocyte on meiotic cell cycle progression following activ...