Despite these changes in embryo metabolism, this did not influence development to the blastocyst stage, but it did reduce the number of inner cell mass and trophectoderm cells.

When the MAS was inhibited, the rate of glycolysis and lactate production was significantly elevated and glucose uptake reduced, relative to control cultured embryos in the presence of pyruvate. Eight-cell-stage mouse embryos were cultured in the presence of the MAS inhibitor amino-oxyacetate, with or without pyruvate as an energy substrate in the media. The aims of this study were to examine the role of the malate-aspartate shuttle (MAS) in nutrient metabolism pathways in the developing mouse blastocyst and the consequences of impaired metabolism on embryo viability and fetal and placental growth. Collectively, our study has provided first information suggesting significant roles of MAS in the survival and energy metabolism in both resting microglia and LPS-activated microglia.The nutrient requirements and metabolic pathways used by the developing embryo transition from predominantly pyruvate during early cleavage stages to glucose at the blastocyst however, the complexities involved in the regulation of metabolism at different developmental stages are not clear. Moreover, our study has excluded the possibility that the major nonspecific effect of AOAA-inhibition of GABA transaminase-is involved in theses effects of AOAA. AOAA also induced mitochondrial depolarization, increases in the cytosolic Ca(2+) concentrations, and decreases in the intracellular ATP levels. We also found that AOAA can induce both early- and late-stage apoptosis of resting microglia and lipopolysaccharides (LPS)-activated microglia. Our study has suggested that AOAA can effectively inhibit the MAS activity of the cells.

In current study, using microglial BV2 cells as a cellular model, we determined the roles of MAS in the survival and energy metabolism of microglia by using aminooxyacetate acid (AOAA)-a widely used MAS inhibitor.

However, there has been no information regarding the roles of NADH shuttle in the survival and energy metabolism of microglia.

Cumulating evidence has suggested that malate-aspartate shuttle (MAS), one of the two types of NADH shuttles, plays significant roles in such biological processes as glutamate synthesis in neurons. NADH shuttles mediate the transfer of the reducing equivalents of cytosolic NADH into mitochondria.

Malate aspartate shuttle