Cryopreservation of mouse embryos affects later embryonic development possibly through reduced expression of the glucose transporter GLUT1.

In order to study the effects of cryopreservation on later embryonic development, two-cell mouse embryos were frozen, thawed, and then allowed to develop into blastocysts. The percentage of cryopreserved embryos which developed into blastocysts was significantly lower than that of fresh two-cell embryos. The amount of glucose incorporation in terms of 3H-2-deoxyglucose uptake in blastocysts developed in vivo, and in vitro from fresh or frozen-thawed two-cell embryos, was 473 +/- 108, 105 +/- 75, and 43.0 +/- 28.3 fmol per embryo per hour, respectively. Quantification of glucose transporter GLUT1 in these embryos by Western blotting was reflective of the degree of glucose incorporation. The implantation rate of blastocysts developed in vitro from frozen-thawed two-cell embryos (22.0%) was significantly lower than that developed in vivo (41.1%). These data suggest that cryopreservation may have later consequences on embryonic development through a mechanism that involves altered GLUT1 expression.