The early days of a human embryo’s development, known as pre-implantation, play a crucial role in determining whether the embryo can survive, how it will implant in the womb, and how its tissues will form. However, studying human embryos faces ethical, legal, and logistical challenges, leading researchers to rely on alternative models, such as stem cell and animal models.
In a recent study published in Nature Cell Biology, Sophie Petropoulos, a researcher at Université de Montréal and the Karolinska Institutet, has demonstrated that guinea pigs can serve as a valuable model for studying human embryogenesis. Guinea pigs share several key physiological traits with humans, making them an ideal model for this kind of research. For example, they are the only small animals that undergo an estrous cycle like women, experience a similar implantation process, and develop placentas that resemble human placentas.
“Despite these similarities, preimplantation development had not been studied,” said Petropoulos, who holds a Canada Research Chair in Functional Genomics of Reproduction and Development. Our lab is focused on infertility and early human development, and we wanted to identify a model to answer our research questions.
Petropoulos and her team used single-cell RNA sequencing to create a detailed gene atlas of guinea pig pre-implantation development. By studying how these genes were expressed, as well as how activating or inhibiting certain signaling pathways affected embryo growth, the team found that guinea pig embryo development closely mirrors that of humans.
This discovery could significantly enhance our understanding of human infertility and lead to the development of therapies for healthier pregnancies. “The guinea pig model can help researchers understand how factors like drug exposure or environmental disruptions impact long-term health outcomes for babies and why some women experience repeated implantation failures,” Petropoulos explained.
Petropoulos’ team has also started investigating post-implantation embryo development, specifically during gastrulation, when organs and tissues begin to form. This phase, which is crucial in the first trimester of pregnancy, is poorly understood and often referred to as the “black box” of human development.
Looking ahead, Petropoulos believes that the guinea pig model could offer valuable insights into the optimal conditions for embryo and fetus development. These findings could help improve fertility treatments and reproductive technologies in the future.
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