A primary insight into gut microbiome, MicroRNA and stemness, in a PCOS rat model.

Polycystic ovary syndrome (PCOS) is a common endocrine disorder associated with reproductive and metabolic dysfunctions, including gut microbiome dysbiosis. This study aimed to examine the alterations in stemness in ovarian surface epithelium (OSE), gut microbiome microRNA expression in granulosa cells and plasma in a dihydrotestosterone (DHT)-induced rat model of PCOS. Female rats were administered DHT to induce PCOS, and the expression of stem cell markers in OSE was assessed to evaluate the impact on stemness.

Two Novel Protein-Truncating Variants in NLRP2 and Their Functional Impacts on the Subcortical Maternal Complex.

Female infertility is a prevalent reproductive disorder with high genetic heterogeneity. Previous reports have demonstrated the causal role of biallelic pathogenic variants in the Subcortical Maternal Complex (SCMC) genes in female reproductive failure with some leading to infertility, early embryonic loss, and molar pregnancies, while others are compatible with live birth with and without multilocus imprinting disorders (MLID). Here, we report two deleterious protein-truncating variants, c.

Defects in meiosis I contribute to the genesis of androgenetic hydatidiform moles.

To identify novel genes responsible for recurrent hydatidiform moles (HMs), we performed exome sequencing on 75 unrelated patients who were negative for mutations in the known genes. We identified biallelic deleterious variants in 6 genes, FOXL2, MAJIN, KASH5, SYCP2, MEIOB, and HFM1, in patients with androgenetic HMs, including a familial case of 3 affected members. Five of these genes are essential for meiosis I, and their deficiencies lead to premature ovarian insufficiency.

True empty follicle syndrome is a subtype of oocyte maturation abnormalities.

Objective: To review the outcomes of in vitro maturation (IVM) and in vitro fertilization (IVF) in women with empty follicle syndrome (EFS). The study evaluated the genetic underpinnings of EFS by analyzing mutations.

Materials And Methods: This retrospective case series involving 17 women with EFS over at least 2 IVF cycles was conducted.

Preimplantation Genetic Testing for Aneuploidy in Fertilization Using Comprehensive Chromosome Screening: A Systematic Review and Meta-Analysis.

The utility of pre-implantation genetic testing (PGT-A) is controversial, with older meta-analyses demonstrating improved pregnancy outcomes, while newer trials have not shown benefit. Therefore, we performed a meta-analysis which aimed to evaluate the benefits of PGT-A using comprehensive chromosome screening (CCS) and its effects on fertilization (IVF) outcomes among randomized controlled trials (RCTs). We conducted a systematic search to identify RCTs comparing women undergoing PGT-A with CSS with women not undergoing PGT-A, from inception to December 2020.

Comparison of luteal phase and follicular phase in-vitro maturation in women with oocyte maturation abnormalities.

Research Question: Are there differences in immature oocyte retrieval following luteal phase in-vitro maturation (IVM) compared with follicular phase IVM in women with oocyte maturation abnormalities (OMAs).

Design: From January 2019 to May 2023, a retrospective cohort study at a private IVF centre included 36 women with 53 IVM cycles in Group 1 (follicular phase) and 24 women with 32 IVM cycles in Group 2 (luteal phase). Additionally, nine women had both follicular and luteal phase IVM cycles for intracycle variability analysis.

A report of two homozygous TERB1 protein-truncating variants in two unrelated women with primary infertility.

Purpose: To investigate the genetic etiology of patients with female infertility.

Methods: Whole Exome Sequencing was performed on genomic DNA extracted from the patient's blood. Exome data were filtered for damaging rare biallelic variants in genes with possible roles in reproduction.

Oocyte in-vitro maturation primed with letrozole-HCG versus FSH-HCG in women with oocyte maturation abnormalities: a retrospective study.

Research Question: Are there differences between in-vitro maturation (IVM) primed with letrozole-human chorionic gonadotrophin (HCG) and IVM primed with FSH-HCG in women with oocyte maturation abnormalities (OMAs), defined as at least two failed IVF cycles where immature oocytes were retrieved?

Design: This retrospective study was conducted at a private fertility clinic from January 2009 to April 2023. The final analysis included 75 women in Group 1 (IVM primed with FSH-HCG) and 52 women in Group 2 (IVM primed with letrozole-HCG).

Results: A significantly higher median number of oocytes was obtained in Group 1 compared with Group 2 {9 [interquartile range (IQR) 1-5] versus 5 (IQR 1-18); P < 0.

An Analysis of pre and post-Processing Semen Parameters at The Time of Intrauterine Insemination; and The Confounding Effects of Total Motile Sperm Counts on Pregnancy Outcome: A Prospective Cohort Study.

Background: This study aims to determine whether pre or post-processing semen parameters obtained during intrauterine insemination (IUI) predict pregnancy when controlling for confounding effects.

Materials And Methods: A prospective cohort study of 2231 semen analyses was conducted at McGill University of IVF center. Any couples who underwent IUI with partner sperm, over a 2.

Intrathecal autologous thrombin-activated condensed platelet cytokines in chronic neurodegenerative disease: A hypothesis for anti-inflammatory and regenerative response.

Choroid plexus insufficiency or glymphatic stasis are often classified as prequels to harmful accretion of toxic proteins in neurodegenerative disease. Cognitive decline and disordered neuronal signaling subsequently become cardinal features of Alzheimer's disease (AD), typically progressing with amyloid-ß and tau protein accumulation. For Parkinson's disease (PD), α-synuclein deposits and dopamine depletion are linked to impaired movement, resting tremor, and rigidity.

TUBB8 mutations as a cause of oocyte maturation abnormalities: presentation of oocyte and embryo profiles and novel mutations.

Research Question: What are the embryonic profiles and oocyte maturation dynamics in patients with tubulin beta eight class VIII (TUBB8) mutations leading to oocyte maturation abnormalities (OMAS), and are pregnancies possible in this population?

Design: A prospective cohort study was undertaken in a private fertility clinic between January 2019 and December 2022. Whole-exome genomic studies (WES) were performed to detect mutation types. In-vitro maturation (IVM) was compared in 18 subjects: nine with TUBB8 mutations, and nine without TUBB8 mutations to act as the control group.

mTOR Inhibition via Low-Dose, Pulsed Rapamycin with Intraovarian Condensed Platelet Cytokines: An Individualized Protocol to Recover Diminished Reserve?

No major breakthroughs have entered mainstream clinical fertility practice since egg donation and intracytoplasmic sperm injection decades ago, and oocyte deficits secondary to advanced age continue as the main manifestation of diminished ovarian reserve. In the meantime, several unproven IVF 'accessories' have emerged including so-called ovarian rejuvenation which entails placing fresh autologous platelet-rich plasma (PRP) directly into ovarian tissue. Among cellular responses attributed to this intervention are reduced oxidative stress, slowed apoptosis and improved metabolism.

Neuroendocrine tumor chromogranin A response following synthetic somatostatin analog (lanreotide): Early observations from an isolated duodenal neoplasm .

Neuroendocrine tumors (NETs) of duodenal origin are an unusual subset among all NETs, comprising only about 3% of this neoplasm class. In general, NETs are characterized by overexpression of somatostatin receptors and carry an excellent prognosis with early diagnosis and intervention. Chromogranin A (CgA), a protein originating in secretory vesicles of neurons and endocrine cells, has gained wide usage in NET diagnosis and surveillance.

Population Dynamics, Plasma Cytokines and Platelet Centrifugation: Technical and Sociodemographic Aspects of 'Ovarian Rejuvenation'.

While advanced reproductive technologies have attained remarkable increases in sophistication, success, and availability since the 1980s, clinicians always meet a therapeutic impasse when the ovarian reserve reaches exhaustion. Irrespective of fertility aspirations, the decline in and eventual collapse of ovarian estrogen output means that menopause arrives with tremendous physiologic changes and reduced overall productivity. Because more women are gaining in longevity or delaying the age at pregnancy, the number of affected patients has never been larger.

Preliminary cost variance modeling to compare autologous intraovarian platelet-rich plasma vs. standard hormone replacement therapy for menopause management.

Background: Menopause symptoms and hormone replacement therapy (HRT) are among the most common reasons patients seek gynecological advice. Although at least half of all women in developed countries will use HRT during their lifetime, the treatment is not without risk and guidance on HRT is mixed. Greater awareness of HRT risks from extended use has piqued interest in safer options.

Role of the X and Y Chromosomes in the Female Germ Cell Line Development in the Mouse (Mus musculus).

Background: In eutherian mammals, the sex chromosome complement, XX and XY, determines sexual differentiation of gonadal primordia into testes and ovaries, which in turn direct differentiation of germ cells into haploid sperm and oocytes, respectively. When gonadal sex is reversed, however, the germ cell sex becomes discordant with the chromosomal sex. XY females in humans are infertile, while XY females in the mouse (Mus musculus) are subfertile or infertile dependent on the cause of sex reversal and the genetic background.

Effects of the Sex Chromosome Complement, XX, XO, or XY, on the Transcriptome and Development of Mouse Oocytes During Follicular Growth.

The sex chromosome complement, XX or XY, determines sexual differentiation of the gonadal primordium into a testis or an ovary, which in turn directs differentiation of the germ cells into sperm and oocytes, respectively, in eutherian mammals. When the X monosomy or XY sex reversal occurs, XO and XY females exhibit subfertility and infertility in the mouse on the C57BL/6J genetic background, suggesting that functional germ cell differentiation requires the proper sex chromosome complement. Using these mouse models, we asked how the sex chromosome complement affects gene transcription in the oocytes during follicular growth.

Three hour abstinence as a treatment for high sperm DNA fragmentation: a prospective cohort study.

Purpose: This study sought to compare sperm DNA fragmentation (SDF) in semen specimens after 3 days and then after 3 h of abstinence in men presenting for initial infertility evaluation.

Methods: A prospective cohort study of 112 men undergoing their first semen analysis as part of an infertility work-up was conducted. All participants presented with 3 days of abstinence for a semen analysis and DNA-fragmentation test.

Pretreatment with a gonadotropin-releasing hormone agonist and an aromatase inhibitor may improve outcomes in in vitro fertilization cycles of women with stage I-II endometriosis.

Objective: To determine whether 2 months of pretreatment with 5 mg of letrozole daily plus leuprolide acetate at 3.75 mg monthly in women with laparoscopically confirmed American Society of Reproductive Medicine stage I-II endometriosis improves in vitro fertilization (IVF) outcomes.

Design: Prospective cohort study.

Effect of GnRH agonist and letrozole treatment in women with recurrent implantation failure.

Objective: To compare the influence of dual suppression with the use of GnRH agonist plus aromatase inhibitor compared with suppression with the use of GnRH agonist alone or no suppression at all in patients with idiopathic recurrent implantation failure (RIF).

Design: Retrospective cohort study.

Setting: University-affiliated reproductive center.

A comparison of two months pretreatment with GnRH agonists with or without an aromatase inhibitor in women with ultrasound-diagnosed ovarian endometriomas undergoing IVF.

Research Question: Does the addition of an aromatase inhibitor improve IVF outcomes in women with endometriomas when pretreating them with gonadotrophin-releasing hormone agonists?

Design: Retrospective two-centre cohort study involving 126 women aged 21-39 years who failed a previous IVF cycle and all subsequent embryo transfers and had sonographic evidence of endometriomas. Women were non-randomly assigned to either 3.75 mg intramuscular depo-leuprolide treatment alone or in combination with 5 mg of oral letrozole daily for 60 days prior to undergoing a fresh IVF cycle.

Vaginal ultrasound-guided ovarian needle puncture compared to laparoscopic ovarian drilling in women with polycystic ovary syndrome.

Study Objective: To compare pregnancy outcomes in PCOS women undergoing transvaginal ovarian injury (TVOI) and laparoscopic ovarian drilling (LOD) DESIGN: 126 infertile patients with PCOS were included in this prospective cohort study CANADIAN TASK FORCE CLASSIFICATION OF LEVEL OF EVIDENCE: IIA.

Setting: University-affiliated fertility center.

Patients: Sixty-seven infertile patients with the history of failed in vitro maturation underwent follow-up as the TVOI group.