Applications of microfluidics in in vitro production of mammalian embryos

This dissertation reports on the development of a microfluidic device for the removal of cumulus cells in the bovine embryo culture system. Several studies are used to explore the effects of traditional cumulus removal techniques on embryo development. We show that microfluidic techniques can be used to improve the early developmental efficiency of in vitro-processed bovine embryos.; A previously demonstrated microfluidic device was further developed for more efficient cumulus removal (CR). The innovative CR technique was then used in a series of experiments exploring the effects of CR on early bovine embryo development. We present data showing that microfluidic CR enhances early embryo development relative to vortexing. We also show that an initial developmental latency due to vortexing is dose dependent. In addition, an in situ assay confirms that the two CR techniques cause fundamental differences in the dynamics of RNA transcription in the early embryo. The increased development rates realized with microfluidic CR demonstrates utility to recent assisted reproduction techniques. The results elucidate the effects of present CR techniques and point toward research directions to increase in vitro efficiencies.