Paternal Diet-Induced Obesity Retards Early Mouse Embryo Development, Mitochondrial Activity and Pregnancy Health

Abstract

Worldwide, 48% of adult males are overweight or obese. An association between infertility and excessive body weight is now accepted, although focus remains primarily on females. It has been shown that parental obesity results in compromised embryo development, disproportionate changes in embryo metabolism and reduced blastocyst cell number. The aim of this study was to determine whether paternal obesity has negative effects on the resultant embryo. Specifically, using in vitro fertilisation (IVF), we wanted to isolate the functional effects of obesity on sperm by examining the subsequent embryo both pre- and post-implantation. Epididymal sperm was collected from age matched normal and obese ..