Characterization of microRNAs in spent culture medium associated with human embryo quality and development

Purpose: Given implantation failure limited the improvement of the in vitro fertilization (IVF) success rate, it was urgent to identify potential biomarkers for embryo quality and predicting the outcomes of IVF-ET. Methods: The expression profiles of 16 spent culture media (SCM) collected from embryos at the cleavage on Day 3 (D3 cleavage) and blastocyst stages on Day 5 (D5 blastocyst) during IVF cycles were determined with RNA-sequencing. Differentially expressed miRNAs (DEmiRNAs) were identified with p-value < 0.05 and |log2FC|> 1. Then, the miRNA-mRNA interaction networks were constructed by using Cytoscape software. Finally, the GO and KEGG pathway analysis of target genes of DEmiRNAs were conducted. Results: Compared with pregnant groups, 29 DEmiRNA were detected in non-pregnant groups at D3 cleavage, and 26 DEmiRNA were detected in non-pregnant group at D5 blastocyst. Among them, a total of six known miRNAs, including hsa-miR-199a-3p>hsa-miR-199b-3p, hsa-miR-199a-5p, hsa-miR-379-5p, hsa-miR-432-5p, hsa-miR-99a-5p and hsa-miR-483-5p, were identified. The results of GO and KEGG pathway analysis indicated that these target genes of DEmiRNAs were associated with various biological processes. Conclusion: In conclusion, we identified three miRNAs, including hsa-miR-199a-5p, hsa-miR-483-5p and hsa-miR-432-5p, may serve as biomarkers for embryo quality during IVF cycles. Overall design: The miRNA expression profiles of 16 spent culture media (SCM) collected from embryos at the cleavage on Day 3 (D3 cleavage) and blastocyst stages on Day 5 (D5 blastocyst) during IVF cycles were obtained based on Illumina X-ten platform.