INFLUENCE OF HUMAN OVARIAN CELLS ON MOTILITY AND LONGEVITY OF MALE GAMETES
MARINA HRISTOVA1*, PLAMENA STAVREVA1,2, ELENA HRISTOVA1, PLAMEN TODOROV1
1-Institute of Biology and Immunology of Reproduction- Bulgarian Academy of Science, Sofia, Bulgaria
2-University Obstetrics and Gynecology Hospital “Selena”, Plovdiv, Bulgaria
*Corresponding author: mhristova_@abv.bg
Keywords: ovarian cells, granulosa cells, co-culture, spermatozoa
Abstract: In laboratory practice, the ability of cultured cells to modify the media is used to develop various co-culture systems. This provides the opportunity to investigate the interactions between different cell types and to study the effect of their secretome. In our experimental design, we tested the influence of two types of human ovarian cells (mixed culture of stromal and purified granulosa cells) on the motility and longevity of processed human spermatozoa in a co-culture system. The results point out, that during the first three hours of co-culture, the total motility of the spermatozoa increases in the experimental, as well as in the control groups. After 6 hours, a higher percentage of gametes with retained motility in the co-culture systems has been observed. Both the mixed ovarian and granulosa cell cultures show similar results. Statistically significant increase (p<0.05) was detected after 12 hours of incubation with purified granulosa cells. The viability and motility of the spermatozoa were preserved up to 74 hours in the control group, compared to 96 hours for the mixed ovarian cells culture and 110 hours in the granulosa cells. In conclusion, the obtained data suggests that the human ovarian cells modify the culture media by secreting different growth factors and biologically active substances, which have a positive effect on the longevity and motility of the male gametes. This experimental design can be used as a method of evaluation of the functional activity of ovarian cells before and after cryopreservation.