Animal Experimentation Effect of pentoxifylline in reducing oxidative stress-induced embryotoxicity1

Purpose: To 1) evaluate the embryotoxic effects of hydrogen peroxide on mouse embryo development and 2) examine if pentoxifylline can reverse hydrogen peroxide induced em-bryotoxicity. Methods: Prospective in vitro study examining the effects of varying concentrations of hy-drogen peroxide and pentoxifylline on the blastocyst development rate alone as well as in combination. Results: A dose-dependent decrease in % BDR was seen with increasing concentrations of H2O2. High concentrations of hydrogen peroxide (>60µM) were embryotoxic. Pentox-ifylline (500µM) was able to reduce the embryotoxic effect of hydrogen peroxide. Percent blastocyst development rate increased from 44 % in hydrogen peroxide alone to 85 % in hy-drogen peroxide and pentoxifylline coincubation. Conclusions: Pentoxifylline may be beneficial in reducing hydrogen peroxide induced em-bryo damage and improve IVF outcome. Patients with endometriosis-associated infertility may benefit from the use of pentoxifylline without significantly affecting embryo develop-ment.