Autophagy Failure in Older Eggs Halts Early Embryo Development
Researchers find that aging in female eggs dampens embryonic autophagy, causing ACOX1 buildup and hyperactive fatty-acid oxidation that drains NAD+, prevents erasure of histone H3K9ac, and blocks exit from minor zygotic genome activation, leading to early developmental arrest. Activating autophagy with Rapamycin rescues development in aged embryos, and the mechanism is conserved in human eggs, suggesting metabolic interventions could boost IVF success for older women.