Coenzyme Q10 ameliorates the quality of postovulatory aged oocytes by suppressing DNA damage and apoptosis

Abstract Postovulatory aging is known to compromise the oocyte quality as well as subsequent embryo development in many different animal models, and becomes one of the most intractable issues that limit the outcome of human assisted reproductive technology (ART). However, the strategies to prevent the deterioration of aged oocytes and relevant mechanisms are still underexplored. Here, we find that supplementation of CoQ10, a natural antioxidant present in human follicular fluids, is able to restore the postovulatory aging-induced fragmentation of oocytes and decline of fertilization. Importantly, we show that CoQ10 supplementation recovers postovulatory aging-caused meiotic defects such as disruption of spindle assembly, misalignment of chromosome, disappearance of actin cap, and abnormal distribution patterns of mitochondria and cortical granules. In addition, CoQ10 protects aged oocytes from premature exocytosis of ovastacin, cleavage of sperm binding site ZP2, and loss of localization of Juno, to maintain the fertilization potential. Notably, CoQ10 suppresses the aging-induced oxidative stress by reducing the levels of superoxide and DNA damage, ultimately inhibiting the apoptosis. Taken together, our findings demonstrate that CoQ10 supplementation is a feasible and effective way to prevent postovulatory aging and preserve the oocyte quality, potentially contributing to improve the successful rate of IVF (in vitro fertilization) and ICSI (intracytoplasmic sperm injection) during human ART.