Approximately 1% of all men in the general population suffer from azoospermia, and azoospermic men constitute approximately 10 to 15% of all infertile men. Thus, this group of patients represents a significant population in the field of male infertility. A thorough medical history, physical examination and hormonal profile are essential in the evaluation of azoospermic males. Imaging studies, a...

This special issue is fully dedicated to the topic of azoospermia and contains the seminal work of renowned scientists and clinicians from seven countries on three continents. In seventeen chapters, a comprehensive review of the epidemiology, genetics, physiopathology, diagnosis, and management of azoospermia addresses our current knowledge on the topic. The clinical results of assisted reprodu...

BACKGROUND/AIM This study determined the effects of cotinine concentrations in follicular fluid (FF) and seminal plasma (SP) on the pregnancy outcome of couples using assisted reproductive techniques (ARTs). MATERIALS AND METHODS This study was conducted as a case-control study. A total of 217 couples were included in the study. Among these couples, there were nonsmokers (66 women and 40 men)...

Recent studies report a high incidence of monozygotic twinning in Beckwith-Wiedemann syndrome. A phenotypical discordance in monozygotic twins is rare. Twinning and Beckwith-Wiedemann syndrome show higher incidence in children born after assisted reproductive techniques. We report on the first observation of esophageal atresia and Beckwith-Wiedemann syndrome in one of the naturally conceived di...

Infertility is a life crisis which leads to serious psychological problems. The present study aims to investigate the effects of hope therapy as a psychological intervention on psychological distresses among infertile women. The present study was an experimental one. The study population included infertile women referring to gynecology clinics. Women who lived in Jahrom and could take part in p...

In the era of sophisticated assisted reproductive techniques (ART), is the role of varicocelectomy in the treatment of male factor infertility anachronistic? Devroey et al. (1) assert that “conventional treatment for male factor infertility has little value and has been revised and abandoned”. They further contend that “intracytoplasmic sperm injection (ICSI) is an effective treatment, even for...

Viruses reproduce by multiplying within host cells. The reproductive fitness of a virus is proportional to the number of offspring it can produce during the lifetime of the cell it infects. If viral production rates are independent of cell death rate, then one expects natural selection will favor viruses that maximize their production rates. However, if increases in the viral production rate le...

usefulness of Japanese quail (Coturnix coturnix japonica) as an expenT z n t a l animal was first pointed out about eight years ago (WILSON, ABBOTT and ABPLANALP 1959, 1961; PADGETT and IVEY 1959). These birds have steadily gained in popularity since then, but few quantitative genetic studies have been reported to date. The present investigation was designed to assess the response of Japanese q...

Using 15 years of data from a stable population of wild Eurasian beavers (Castor fiber), we examine how annual and lifetime access to food resources affect individual age-related changes in reproduction and somatic condition. We found an age-related decline in annual maternal reproductive output, after a peak at age 5-6. Rainfall, an established negative proxy of annual resource availability fo...

Porcine reproductive and respiratory syndrome virus (PRRSV) ORF5 and ORF7 sequences from Belarus were found to be of the European (EU) genotype, but grouped separately from all other EU genotype sequences described so far, including live-attenuated EU genotype PRRSV vaccines and Italian EU genotype sequences, some of which have been associated with reduced vaccine efficacy. Also, the Belarusian...