Purpose To assess the kisspeptin concentrations in follicular fluid and their relationship with clinical outcomes during assisted reproductive technology. Methods Thirty-nine patients who were aged 24-40 years and underwent oocyte retrieval for in vitro fertilization/intracytoplasmic sperm injection participated in this study. In 65 follicular fluid samples that had been obtained from 30 pati...

Ovarian function is directly correlated with survival of the primordial follicle reserve. Women diagnosed with cancer have a primary imperative of treating the cancer, but since the resting oocytes are hypersensitive to the DNA-damaging modalities of certain chemo- and radiotherapeutic regimens, such patients face the collateral outcome of premature loss of fertility and ovarian endocrine funct...

OBJECTIVE To analyze data from a large multicenter study to determine whether pregnancy and delivery rates decrease with repeated IVF-ET cycles. DESIGN Multicenter retrospective study. SETTING Participating centers from the Society of Assisted Reproductive Technology. PATIENT(S) Fifty-four centers contributed 4,043 cycles of oocyte retrieval for uterine transfer. INTERVENTION(S) Oocyte ...

In vivo, resumption of oocyte meiosis occurs in large ovarian follicles after the preovulatory surge of luteinizing hormone (LH). The LH surge leads to the activation of a broad signaling network in mural granulosa cells equipped with LH receptors. The signals generated in the mural granulosa cells are further augmented by locally produced peptides or steroids and transferred to the cumulus cel...

Safety of Assisted Reproductive Technology in theUnited States, 2000-2011 Useof assisted reproductive technology (ART) continues to increase in the United States and globally. In an effort to improve patient safety, stimulation protocols have become less aggressive, oocyte retrieval has transitioned from laparoscopic to transvaginal, and pregnancy rates have improved.1 However, limiteddata exis...

So-called mild controlled ovarian hyperstimulation (mCOH) has in recent years increased in popularity, claiming to be safer and more patient-friendly, while also improving in vitro fertilization (IVF) outcomes. We here challenge the International Society for Mild Approaches in Assisted Reproduction (ISMAAR) definition of mild stimulation, and especially address four fundamental issues, where ou...

Asymmetric meiotic divisions in mammalian oocytes rely on the eccentric positioning of the spindle and the remodeling of the overlying cortex, resulting in the formation of small polar bodies. The mechanism of this cortical polarization, exemplified by the formation of a thick F-actin cap, is poorly understood. Cdc42 is a major player in cell polarization in many systems; however, the spatio-te...

Precise control of the timing of translational activation of dormant mRNAs stored in oocytes is required for normal progression of oocyte maturation. We previously showed that Pumilio1 (Pum1) is specifically involved in the translational control of cyclin B1 mRNA during Xenopus oocyte maturation, in cooperation with cytoplasmic polyadenylation element-binding protein (CPEB). It was reported tha...

The raison d'etre of the germline is to produce oocytes and sperm that pass genetic material and cytoplasmic constituents to the next generation. To achieve this goal, many developmental processes must be executed and coordinated. ERK, the terminal MAP kinase of a number of signaling pathways, controls many aspects of development. Here we present a comprehensive analysis of MPK-1 ERK in Caenorh...

BACKGROUND Polycystic ovary syndrome (PCOS) is associated with metabolic disturbances which include impaired insulin signalling and glucose metabolism in ovarian follicles. The oocyte is metabolically dependent upon its follicle environment during development, but it is unclear whether PCOS or polycystic ovarian (PCO) morphology alone affect oocyte metabolism and energy-demanding processes such...