EmbryoMax Advanced KSOM Medium is a new, uniquely buffered modified version of KSOM that can be used as a single medium to harvest and culture preimplantation mouse embryos. The medium will maintain pH out on the bench top and also grow embryos in vitro, replacing the normal 2-step system where one medium is used for embryo harvest and another is used for culture. The Advanced KSOM medium has been shown to produce a higher frequency of blastocyst formation in multiple mouse strains after 72 hours in culture when compared to standard KSOM medium.Traditionally, retrieving and then growing mouse embryos in vitro is usually a 2-step system. Embryos are commonly removed from the oviducts in a HEPES buffered medium (e.g. M2, FHM), which maintain their pH in air. The embryos are then transferred into a second medium which is bicarbonate buffered (e.g. M16, CZB, KSOM) and placed in a CO2 incubator in order to maintain the pH of the medium. Furthermore, the bicarbonate buffered medium needs to be pre-equilibrated in the incubator for several hours prior to receiving embryos to achieve optimal growth. The EmbryoMax Advanced KSOM Medium enables both embryo handling in atmospheric conditions and culturing in a CO2 incubator with a single medium. No medium pre-equilibration step is necessary for embryo harvest, but pre-equilibration is recommended for culture.
Application: Research CategoryStem Cell Research
Legal Information: EmbryoMax is a trademark of Merck KGaA, Darmstadt, Germany