Oocyte separator

Abstract

The utility model provides an oocyte separator which is characterized in that the oocyte separator comprises an injection assembly which comprises a cylinder, a piston and a piston rod, one end of the cylinder is provided with a nipple part, and the nipple part is communicated with liquid of the cylinder so as to suck separated oocytes and / or push out liquid through the nipple part; the piston is arranged in the cylinder and is in airtight fit with the interior of the cylinder, and the piston rod is connected with the piston and is arranged in the cylinder in a sliding manner; the cutting assembly comprises a blade; wherein the injection assembly and the cutting assembly are detachably connected. According to the utility model, the thin blade cutting technology is introduced, so that the treatment efficiency is improved, the oocyte acquisition efficiency is improved, the operation difficulty and cost are reduced, and powerful technical support is provided for research in the fields of reproductive biology, genetics, developmental biology and the like.

Description

Technical Field

[0001] The utility model relates to the fields of reproductive biology and embryology, and more particularly to an oocyte separator. Background Art

[0002] Oocytes are an essential component of female reproductive cells and are crucial for studying animal reproduction, reproductive diseases, and genetic disorders. In fields such as reproductive biology, genetics, and developmental biology, oocyte isolation from the ovaries of mammals like mice is a common practice. In recent years, animal embryo engineering research has remained a hot topic, with the emergence of test tube animals and cloned animals, and the gradual establishment and maturation of in vitro culture systems for oocytes and embryos. Acquisition of oocytes is a key component of this research.

[0003] In current studies, mammalian oocytes, such as mouse oocytes, are mainly obtained by cutting with a 26-gauge needle (Du, Z., Zheng, H., Kawamura, Y.K., Zhang, K., Gassler, J., Powell, S., Xu, Q., Lin, Z., Xu, K., Zhou, Q., Ozonov, E.A., Veron, N., Huang, B., Li, L., Yu, G., Liu, L., Au Yeung, W.K., Wang, P., Chang, L., Wang, Q., He, A., Sun, Y., Na, J., Sun, Q., Sasaki, H., Tachibana, K., Peters, A., & Xie, W. (2020). Polycomb Group Proteins Regulate Chromatin Architecture in Mouse Oocytes and Early Embryos. Mol. Cell, 77(4), 825-839e827. https: / / doi.org / 10.1016 / j.molcel.2019.11.011). However, this needle-assisted oocyte extraction method has several drawbacks: 1) It can only obtain oocytes from mature follicles observed under a microscope. It is not feasible to collect oocytes from earlier stages because the ovaries of early-stage mice before sexual maturity are small and the follicles are very small, making it difficult to cut and collect them with a syringe needle. 2) The operation must be performed under a microscope, and it takes too long, which is not conducive to the later development of the oocyte (if the in vitro operation exceeds two hours, the mouse oocyte will develop from the GV period (0H) to the GVBD period (2-4H), where GVBD (germinal vesicle breakdown) refers to the phenomenon of germinal vesicle breakdown in the primary oocyte. In the process of mouse oocyte maturation and development, the occurrence of GVBD is generally considered to be one of the signs of oocyte nuclear maturation. 3) Low separation efficiency: The separation process takes a long time, and the number of separated oocytes is limited. Only a small number of oocytes can be obtained, because only the follicles observed under the microscope can be cut, and some smaller follicles cannot be fully cut, so oocytes cannot be obtained from the above-mentioned tissues, resulting in a great waste of resources. 4) Cutting and liquid flushing cannot be completed synchronously, which makes the cut tissue easy to dry out.

[0004] Therefore, it is of great practical value to develop an oocyte separator that is efficient, simple, easy to operate, and integrates separation and flushing. Utility Model Content

[0005] In order to solve the above problems, the utility model provides an oocyte separator.

[0006] According to a first aspect of the present invention, there is provided an oocyte separator, characterized in that it comprises:

[0007] An injection assembly, comprising a barrel, a piston, and a piston rod, wherein a nipple is provided at one end of the barrel, the nipple being in fluid communication with the barrel so as to aspirate separated oocytes and / or push out liquid through the nipple, the piston being disposed in the barrel and in airtight contact with the interior of the barrel, and the piston rod being connected to the piston and slidably disposed in the barrel; and

[0008] a cutting assembly including a blade;

[0009] The injection assembly and the cutting assembly are detachably connected.

[0010] The oocyte separator provided by the present invention provides a novel oocyte separator by introducing a blade into the separation of oocytes. Compared with the traditional cutting method, it has the following advantages:

[0011] 1) Multi-directional cutting: The utility model provides an ingenious introduction of the blade, which not only allows for flexible cutting in multiple directions, but also can adapt to ovaries of different sizes and cut follicles of different sizes, shapes and arrangements, thus improving the flexibility and efficiency of separation;

[0012] 2) Improve the oocyte retrieval rate: Compared with the traditional method of using a needle to separate oocytes, the utility model does not need to consider the selection of needles. By controlling the thickness of the blade, it ensures that it can easily cut the follicle wall. At the same time, it avoids the operational difficulties and oocyte damage caused by improper needle size, thereby improving the oocyte retrieval rate;

[0013] 3) Save time: Compared with the traditional method of treating ovaries one by one, the present invention allows treating more than 20 ovaries at a time, which greatly shortens the operation time, speeds up the experimental process, and can obtain more oocytes in a shorter time, providing sufficient materials for subsequent culture, which has a positive effect on the accuracy and reliability of the experimental results.

[0014] 4) Wide applicability: The oocyte separator provided by the present invention can effectively cut ovaries of all sizes. At the same time, due to the flexibility and adjustability of the blade, the oocyte separator is not limited by the size of the follicle. This makes the present invention not only suitable for small animals such as mice, but also widely applicable to large animals such as pigs, cattle, and sheep, demonstrating its wide applicability.

[0015] 5) Cost reduction: The application of this utility model significantly reduces the number of operators required, allowing one person to efficiently process a large number of ovaries, thereby significantly reducing labor costs. In addition, the use of required reagents and liquids is reduced, further reducing experimental costs and time costs, as well as reducing the generation of waste liquid and the cost of waste liquid treatment;

[0016] 6) Simplified process: The oocyte separator provided by the present invention can reduce the attachment of granulosa cells when separating oocytes, thereby avoiding the tedious steps of removing granulosa cells later, saving time and improving the quality of oocytes, and simplifying the operation process.

[0017] 7) Enhanced ease of use: The utility model simplifies the separation operation steps and does not require complex training to use. The operator only needs to adjust the blade depth and cutting angle to easily complete the oocyte separation work, which reduces the requirements for the operator's technical level and enables more laboratories to use this technology conveniently.

[0018] In summary, the utility model not only improves processing efficiency and oocyte acquisition efficiency by introducing thin blade cutting technology, but also reduces operation difficulty and cost, providing strong technical support for research in reproductive biology, genetics, developmental biology and other fields. BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

[0019] In order to more clearly illustrate the embodiments of the present invention or the technical solutions in the prior art, the following briefly introduces the drawings required for use in the embodiments. Obviously, the drawings described below are only some embodiments of the present invention. For ordinary technicians in this field, other implementation plans can be obtained based on these drawings without paying any creative work.

[0020] Figure 1 A schematic diagram of an oocyte separator is shown according to some embodiments.

[0021] Figure 2 A schematic diagram of an oocyte separator with an injection tube according to some other embodiments is shown. DETAILED DESCRIPTION

[0022] The following is a clear and complete description of the present invention in conjunction with the embodiments and drawings of the present invention. Obviously, the embodiments described are only part of the embodiments of the present invention, not all of the embodiments. Based on the embodiments of the present invention, all other embodiments that can be obtained by a person of ordinary skill in the art are within the scope of protection of the present invention.

[0023] All terms and phrases in this utility model should be interpreted according to their ordinary meanings as understood by those skilled in the art. Unless otherwise specified, the terms mentioned in this utility model have the same meanings. In this utility model, only the terms, materials used, and properties of the materials mentioned for the first time are described in detail. Unless otherwise specified, when the terms are mentioned again in this utility model, the meanings of the terms, the types of materials used, and the properties of the materials are the same as when they were first mentioned, and therefore they will not be repeated.

[0024] According to a first aspect of the present invention, an oocyte separator is provided, characterized in that it comprises: an injection assembly, comprising a barrel, a piston and a piston rod, wherein a nipple is provided at one end of the barrel, the nipple is connected to the barrel fluid so as to suck out the separated oocytes and / or push out the liquid through the nipple, the piston is arranged in the barrel and fits airtightly with the interior of the barrel, the piston rod is connected to the piston and is slidably arranged in the barrel; and a cutting assembly, comprising a blade; wherein the injection assembly and the cutting assembly are detachably connected.

[0025] In some embodiments, the injection assembly can be a conventional syringe.

[0026] In the present invention, one end of the tube is open, and the other end is provided with a nipple connected to the fluid therewith. The material of the tube can be any material known in the art that is suitable for the present invention, including but not limited to metal, metal alloy, plastic, ceramic, and those skilled in the art can select it according to needs. In some embodiments, the tube is provided with an anti-slip portion to prevent the oocyte separator from slipping during the process of separating oocytes. In some embodiments, the anti-slip portion is an anti-slip texture, and of course other anti-slip designs can also be used, which is not further limited by the present invention. The anti-slip portion is provided at one end away from the nipple to ensure that during operation, the anti-slip portion used for hand-holding will not come into contact with ovarian tissue, thereby avoiding possible contamination.

[0027] In the present invention, the piston is disposed within the barrel and is in airtight contact with the interior of the barrel. The piston rod is connected to the piston and slidably disposed within the barrel. The piston rod pushes the piston to reciprocate within the barrel to aspirate the separated oocytes and / or expel the liquid. The piston and the piston rod can be made of any material known in the art and suitable for the present invention, including but not limited to metals, metal alloys, silicone, rubber, and plastics. Persons skilled in the art can select the material as needed.

[0028] In the present invention, the nipple is disposed at one end of the barrel and is in fluid communication with the barrel, thereby allowing the separated oocytes to enter the barrel through the nipple and / or allowing the liquid to leave the barrel through the nipple. In the present invention, the nipple is hollow, and its cross-sectional dimensions are smaller than the cross-sectional dimensions of the barrel, thereby ensuring that the separated oocytes enter the barrel through it. The material of the nipple can be any material known in the art that is suitable for the present invention, including but not limited to plastic, silicone, rubber, metal, and metal alloys. Those skilled in the art can select it according to their needs, as long as it can aspirate the oocytes. In some embodiments, the nipple is integrally formed with the barrel.

[0029] In the present invention, the cutting assembly may include one or more blades, for example, two, three, four, five, six, seven, or the like. As known to those skilled in the art, ovarian follicles are tiny, sac-like structures surrounding oocytes, with relatively thin walls. Therefore, to effectively fragment the follicles and release the oocytes, the blades in the cutting assembly must be sufficiently thin to penetrate the follicle walls without damaging the oocytes within. In some embodiments, the blades are single-edged. In some embodiments, the thickness of the blades is 0.1-0.25 mm, for example, 0.1 mm, 0.15 mm, 0.2 mm, or 0.25 mm. The blades can be shaped differently, such as square, parallelogram, or trapezoidal, to facilitate changing blade configurations for different cutting angles or forces. The blades can be made of any material known in the art and suitable for the present invention, including but not limited to stainless steel and cemented carbide, and can be selected by those skilled in the art as needed. In some embodiments, the blades are razor blades. In some embodiments, the blades are arranged in a straight line. In some embodiments, the blades are symmetrically arranged in a cross shape.

[0030] In some embodiments, the cutting depth of the blade is adjustable, such as by a rotating or sliding mechanism, so that the operator can adjust the cutting depth according to the thickness of the ovarian tissue and the size of the follicle to achieve the best cutting effect.

[0031] In the present invention, the injection assembly and the cutting assembly are detachably connected, allowing the operator to remove and assemble the cutting assembly at any time as needed during use, thereby increasing the flexibility of the oocyte separator. Specifically, when cutting an ovary, the cutting assembly and the injection assembly can be connected together. After cutting, the cutting assembly can be removed, and the negative pressure of the injection assembly can be used to quickly draw the separated oocytes into the barrel.

[0032] In some embodiments, the injection assembly and the cutting assembly are detachably connected directly. In some embodiments, the injection assembly further comprises a notch disposed at the free end of the nipple portion, the notch enabling the blade to be tightly secured therein. In some embodiments, the thickness (or width) of the notch is configured to be less than or equal to the thickness of the blade, thereby enabling the blade to be tightly secured therein.

[0033] Figure 1 A schematic diagram of an oocyte separator according to some embodiments is shown. Figure 1 In the embodiment, the oocyte separator includes: an injection assembly, including a barrel 1, a piston 2 and a piston rod 3, wherein a nipple 4 is provided at one end of the barrel 1, a notch is provided at the free end of the nipple for fixing a blade, and the nipple 4 is in fluid communication with the barrel 1 so as to suck and separate oocytes and / or push out liquid through the nipple 4, the piston 2 is arranged in the barrel 1 and is airtightly fitted with the interior of the barrel 1, the piston rod 3 is connected to the piston 2 and is slidably arranged in the barrel 1; and a cutting assembly, which is a blade 5.

[0034] In some embodiments, the cutting assembly further includes a connecting component, and the injection assembly and the cutting assembly are detachably connected to each other via the connecting component by means of a pin connection, a threaded connection, or a snap connection.

[0035] In some embodiments, the connecting component is a sealing plug, a blade being fixed to one end of the sealing plug, and the sealing plug can be tightly fixed to the inner surface of the nipple. In some embodiments, the diameter of the sealing plug is greater than or equal to the inner diameter of the nipple so that the sealing plug can be tightly fixed to the inner surface of the nipple. The material of the sealing plug can be any material known in the art and suitable for the present invention, including but not limited to silicone, rubber, and polytetrafluoroethylene (PTFE), and those skilled in the art can select it according to their needs.

[0036] In some embodiments, the connecting component is a rotary cap having a blade fixed to the outside of the rotary cap, and the rotary cap is screwed to a thread provided on the outside of the nipple portion. The material of the rotary cap can be any material known in the art and suitable for the present invention, including but not limited to plastic, silicone, rubber, metal, and metal alloys, and can be selected by those skilled in the art as needed.

[0037] In some embodiments, the connecting component is a bolt, a blade being fixed to one end of the bolt, and the bolt is screwed to the inner side of the nipple via a threaded connection. The material of the bolt can be any material known in the art that is suitable for the present invention, including but not limited to plastic, silicone, rubber, metal, and metal alloys, and those skilled in the art can select the material as needed. In one embodiment, the blade is retractably disposed at one end of the bolt, similar to a push-pull button on a utility knife, so that when the button is pushed outward, the blade extends, and when the button is pulled inward, the blade retracts, making it safer when installed on the nipple.

[0038] In some embodiments, the injection assembly further comprises an injection tube disposed on the side of the barrel and in fluid communication with the barrel, for injecting liquid into the barrel. In the present invention, the injection tube is primarily used to inject a buffer solution into the barrel after the ovaries are cut and the oocytes are released, thereby flushing the released oocytes. In some embodiments, the injection tube is integrally formed with the barrel. In some embodiments, the injection tube is connected to the opening on the side of the barrel by, for example, an adhesive, and a sealing gasket or O-ring is provided at the connection to prevent possible leakage of liquid or tissue during operation, thereby further reducing the risk of contamination. One end of the injection tube is in fluid communication with the barrel, and the other end is sealable. A person skilled in the art may select a sealing method as needed, and the present invention does not further limit this. The material of the injection tube may be any material known in the art that is suitable for the present invention, including but not limited to plastic, silicone, rubber, metal, and metal alloy. A person skilled in the art may select a material as needed.

[0039] Figure 2 Schematic diagrams of oocyte separators with injection tubes according to other embodiments are shown. The injection assembly is a syringe with an injection tube 7, one end of which is in fluid communication with the barrel and the other end is sealed with a plug. The cutting assembly includes a sealing plug 6, on which blades 5 are fixed, with the blades symmetrically arranged in a cross shape. The side of the sealing plug opposite the blades can be hollow, as shown in the figure, or solid.

[0040] By introducing a cutting assembly including a blade, this utility model designs a highly efficient, simple, and minimally damaging mouse oocyte separator. This design not only improves separation efficiency but also reduces the risk of contamination during operation, providing strong support for research in reproductive biology, genetics, developmental biology, and other fields.

[0041] The above are only preferred embodiments of the present invention and are not intended to limit the present invention. Any modifications, equivalent replacements, improvements, etc. made within the spirit and principles of the present invention should be included in the scope of protection of the present invention.

Claims

1. An oocyte separator, characterized in that include: An injection assembly comprises a barrel, a piston and a piston rod, wherein a nipple is provided at one end of the barrel, the nipple being in fluid communication with the barrel so as to aspirate separated oocytes and / or push out liquid through the nipple, the piston being disposed in the barrel and in airtight contact with the interior of the barrel, and the piston rod being connected to the piston and slidably disposed in the barrel; and a cutting assembly including a blade; The injection assembly and the cutting assembly are detachably connected.

2. The oocyte separator according to claim 1, characterized in that The injection assembly further comprises a notch provided at the free end of the nipple portion, wherein the notch enables the blade to be tightly fixed therein.

3. The oocyte separator according to claim 1, characterized in that The cutting assembly further includes a connecting component, and the injection assembly and the cutting assembly are detachably connected via the connecting component by means of a pin connection, a threaded connection, or a snap connection.

4. The oocyte separator according to claim 3, characterized in that The connecting component is a sealing plug, one end of which is fixed with a blade, and the sealing plug can be tightly fixed to the inner surface of the nipple.

5. The oocyte separator according to claim 3, characterized in that The connecting component is a rotary cap, a blade is fixed on the outer side of the rotary cap, and the rotary cap is screwed and connected to a thread arranged on the outer side of the nipple through a thread.

6. The oocyte separator according to claim 3, characterized in that The connecting component is a bolt, one end of which is fixed with a blade, and the bolt is screwed and connected to the inner side of the nipple through a thread.

7. The oocyte separator according to any one of claims 1 to 6, characterized in that The injection assembly further includes an injection tube disposed on a side of the barrel and in fluid communication with the barrel for injecting liquid into the barrel.

8. The oocyte separator according to any one of claims 1 to 6, characterized in that The thickness of the blade is 0.1-0.25 mm.

9. The oocyte separator according to any one of claims 1 to 6, characterized in that The material of the blade is stainless steel or hard alloy.

10. The oocyte separator according to any one of claims 1 to 6, characterized in that The blades are distributed in a straight line or symmetrically in a cross shape.

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