DESPITE DECADES OF RESEARCH ON DAIRY COWS, CURRENT IN VITRO FERTILIZATION (IVF) METHODS STILL RESULT IN LOW-QUALITY EMBRYOS. THIS COULD POTENTIALLY LEAD TO EARLY EMBRYONIC DEATH AND INADEQUATE MATERNAL RECOGNITION OF PREGNANCY, WHICH ARE CONTRIBUTING FACTORS TO POOR FERTILITY. CONSEQUENTLY, THERE IS A CLEAR NEED FOR A MORE THOROUGH INVESTIGATION OF THE NUTRITIONAL PHYSIOLOGY OF THESE EMBRYOS BEFORE THEY ARE TRANSFERRED INTO A COW TO ESTABLISH A PREGNANCY. WE HYPOTHESIZE THAT EMBRYO DEVELOPMENT CAN BE ALTERED BY CHANGING THE AVAILABILITY AND BALANCE OF THEIR NUTRIENT AND ENERGY SOURCES (GLUCOSE, FRUCTOSE,OR GLUTAMINE, FOR EXAMPLE). IN THIS CONTEXT, THE AIM OF OUR PROPOSED RESEARCH IS TO DETERMINE HOW THE PRESENCE OF DIFFERENT COMPOUNDS IN THE NUTRIENT MIXTURE AFFECTS EMBRYONIC HEALTH AND VIABILITY. USING A VARIETY OF APPROACHES THAT WILL PROBE THE RATES OF BIOCHEMICAL REACTIONS WITHIN THE COMPLEX METABOLIC NETWORKS FOUND IN BOVINE EMBRYOS, WE HOPE TO GAIN A GLOBAL UNDERSTANDING OF THEIR METABOLICFITNESS OR WELL-BEING.THIS KNOWLEDGE WILL AID IN IMPROVING NUTRIENT SUPPORT DURING DEVELOPMENT AND COULD BOOST LIVESTOCK PRODUCTION BY IMPROVING IN VITRO FERTILIZATION SYSTEMS AND INCREASE FOOD PRODUCTION TO MEET THE INCREASING DEMANDS OF THE GROWING WORLD POPULATION AND DIRECTLY ADDRESSES THE PRIORITIES OF ANIMAL REPRODUCTION (A1211).