BRF is completing the first ever analysis of whole genome microarrays of RNAs from human 8-cell embryos never cryopreserved.
The goals include:
- improving culture conditions to support pathways important for totipotent cell division,
- understanding cellular pathways involved in the transition from totipotency to pluripotency, and
- providing a gene expression reference for early parthenote development in order to improve the efficiency of stem cell derivation from parthenogenetically activated human eggs.
This work is made possible because of a collaboration with the Dept. of Obstetrics and Gynecology, Alexandra Hospital, University of Athens, Greece.This type of comprehensive approach would be difficult at U.S academic institutions because of funding restrictions and the lack of availability of non-cryopreserved human embryos.