On the possible cause of monozygotic twinning: Lessons from the 9-banded armadillo and from assisted reproduction

Abstract

Available hypotheses proposed to explain the mechanism of zygotic splitting fail to explain why monozygotic twins are more prevalent after all methods of assisted reproduction and which structure is likely to control this phenomenon. Arguably, a small proportion of oocytes might have an inborn propensity to undergo splitting upon fertilization leading to the constant prevalence of spontaneous monozygotic conceptions among different populations. Ovarian stimulation would then predictably increase the number of available splitting-prone oocytes and consequently would increase the chance for such oocytes to develop into monozygotic twins, leading to a 'dose'-dependent relationship between monozygosity rates and the combined effect of infertility treatment. Embryonic division into 2 distinct cell lines begins and accommodates within an intact zona pellucida that controls the process by preventing ill-timed hatching. Human fertilized oocytes are able to undergo 2 binary fissions, just as is the case for the 9-banded armadillo (the only other mammal that produces monozygotic quadruplets) and to give rise to a variety of combinations of monozygotic pregnancies. This hypothetical explanation does not negate the already existing and genetically sound hypotheses, but places them into a broader perspective that respects recent observations from modern infertility treatment.