In vitro maturation and in vitro fertilization of mouse oocytes and preimplantation embryo culture.

Epigenetic regulation of gene expression in the germline is important for reproductive success of mammals. Misregulation of genes whose expression is correlated with reproductive success may result in subfertility or infertility. To study epigenetic events that occur during oocyte maturation and preimplantation embryo development, it is important to generate large numbers of ovarian follicles and embryos. Oocyte maturation can be modeled using in vitro maturation (IVM), which is a system of maturing ovarian follicles in a culture dish. In addition, fertilization and early embryogenesis can be modeled using in vitro fertilization (IVF), which involves the fertilization of mature oocytes with capacitated sperm in a culture dish. Here, we describe protocols for in vitro maturation (IVM) and in vitro fertilization (IVF) of mouse oocytes and preimplantation embryo culture. These protocols are suitable for the study of oocyte and embryo biology and the production of embryonic mice.