Hyperbaric Oxygen Treatment Ameliorates the Decline in Oocyte Quality and Improves the Fertility of Aged Female Mice

The age-related decay in oocyte quality contributes to the gradual decline in fertility and the final occurrence of natural sterility. In this study, we aimed to investigate the effects of the hyperbaric oxygen treatment (HBOT) on oocyte quality in aging mouse oocyte. Eight- and forty-week-old female C57BL/6 J mice were treated with HBO for 10 days, and the quality of oocytes was analyzed. The results revealed that HBOT improved the age-related serum AMH levels. While compared with untreated aged mice, HBOT showed reduced follicular apoptosis and improved oocyte maturation, fertilization, and blastocyst formation in aged mice. HBO triggered changes in the microRNA expression in the ovaries of aged mice. In this study, 27 DEGs were identified in the HBOT mouse ovarian tissues, of which 9 were upregulated and 18 were downregulated. Notably, KEGG analysis revealed that these genes involved in different biological processes differed significantly in the ovary. Among these, the PI3K-Akt signaling was the most prominent pathway that controlled the recruitment and growth of primordial follicles. The calcium signaling pathway was found to be involved during the peri-implantation period. These results suggest that HBOT can be applied to improve the quality of oocytes, and it could be a potential clinical application to improve the fertility of aged female.