In mammalian reproductive tract, the oviduct secretes huge number of growth factors and cytokines that create an optimal micro-environment for the initial stages of preimplantation embryos. Secretion of these growth factors is stage-specific. Among them, VEGF is a potent mitogen for vascular endothelium and stimulates vascular permeability. Apart from angiogenesis, VEGF in the oviduct may be in...

Background: Motile sperm is essential for successful embryo production. The aim of the present study was to compare the in vitro embryo development following isolation of Ram epididymal sperm isolation by swim up (SP) or Histoprep® continuous gradient (HP). Materials and Methods: Ram testes-epididymis were provided from the local slaughterhouse and transported to the lab. Sperms were recovered ...

BACKGROUND Arresting at a certain stage of development like the two-cell stage could be one of the causes of infertility. The aim of this study is to evaluate the effects of ethanol and strontium on growth and development of mice embryos arrested at the two-cell stage. MATERIALS AND METHODS In this experimental study, female mice were coupled with a male following superovulation. Positive vag...

BACKGROUND In 1996, with the introduction of sequential media, we set up a programme of cryopreservation of supernumerary morulae (day 4) and blastocysts (day 5) using a vitrification procedure. Our results showed that the efficiency of the vitrification method was dependent on the stage of embryo development and was negatively correlated with the expansion of the blastocoele. We postulated tha...

Iron is an important trace element involved in several biological processes. The role of iron in porcine early embryonic development remains unknown. In the present study, we depleted iron (III, Fe3+) with deferoxamine (DFM), a specific Fe3+ chelator, in cultured porcine parthenotes and monitored embryonic development, apoptosis, mitochondrial membrane potential, and ATP production. Results sho...

To avoid multiple pregnancies, it is important to select a single high quality embryo for transfer. Observation of meiotic spindles in oocytes is one way of evaluating embryo developmental competence. The spindle is non-invasively visualized by polarized light microscopy. It is possible to perform ICSI more safely and with optimal timing during meiosis by visualizing the meiotic spindle just be...

OBJECTIVE To review the outcomes of preimplantation genetic diagnosis (PGD) using zona drilling with acid Tyrode's solution (chemical zona pellucida drilling, chemical ZD) and those of partial zona dissection (PZD). METHODS Clinical outcomes of seventy-one couples undergoing 85 PGD cycles from January 2005 to December 2010 were included. Blastocyst formation and the hatching rate, clinical pr...

introduction: the aim of this investigation was to study the developmental potential of human fragmented embryos to blastocyst stage and to evaluate thedeveloped blastocysts in the term of size, cellularity, the type of inner cell mass(icm), trophoetoderm (te) and the number of dead cells. material and methods: four to eight cell fragmented human embryos wereobtained from the embryology lab of ...

In this work, Dehydroleucodine (DhL) was evaluated as a chemical activator of bovine oocytes and somatic cell nuclear transfer (SCNT) reconstituted embryos. Oocytes were activated with 5 microM Ionomycin (Io) and exposed for 3 h to 1 or 5 microM DhL alone (Io-Dhl1 or Io-DhL5) or combined with Cytochalasin B (Io-DhL1/CB; Io-DhL5/CB). Control groups were Io (Io), Io followed by 1.9 mM 6-Dimethyla...