Abstract

Excessive reactive oxygen species (ROS) during assisted reproductive technology (ART) impairs embryonic development, yet the intrinsic molecular mechanisms remain inadequately understood. Through transcriptomic profiling (Drug-seq) of oxidatively stressed mouse embryos, we identified peroxisome proliferator-activated receptor gamma (PPARγ) as a critical regulator whose essential upregulation during zygotic genome activation (ZGA) is suppressed. Functional studies demonstrated that the pharmacological activation of PPARγ via the agonist GW1929 robustly rescued developmental arrest by scavenging ROS, restoring mitochondrial function, and maintaining metabolic homeostasis. Mechanistically, we demonstrate that PPARγ activation transcriptionally upregulates GSK3β, which in turn suppresses oxidative stress-induced aberrant Wnt/β-catenin signaling. Our findings establish PPARγ as a central guardian of embryonic redox and metabolic homeostasis, and propose PPARγ agonism as a potential strategy to improve ART outcomes by counteracting oxidative injury. Biological sciences; Developmental genetics; Developmental biology