Serum levels of follicle stimulating hormone (FSH) and luteinising hormone (LH) in institutionalised male patients with Down's syndrome (DS) have been found to be significantly higher than in age matched controls from the same institution. This difference is found in patients both under and over 30 years of age with respect to FSH levels, but the increase in LH levels is confined to patients wi...

There is still some confusion about the ability of monkey and human gonadotrophins to cross react in immunological systems. McGarry & Beck (1963), using a haemagglutination inhibition technique, found a cross reaction between antisera to human fsh and monkey fsh. They also found a similar cross reaction with lh. Neill, Peckham & Knobil (1967), Bagshawe, Orr & Godden (1968) and Faiman, Ryan, Gre...

Polycystic ovary syndrome (PCOS) is a frequent disorder, affecting approximately 5-10% of infertile women. It can represent more than 80% of cases of infertility due to anovulation. The main goal of treatment is the induction of mono-ovulatory cycles. A pragmatic management of infertility in PCOS will allow most patients to conceive. Weight loss and clomiphene citrate (CC) are the first-line co...

BACKGROUND This is the first study of the effect of epidermal growth factor (EGF) on marmoset monkey oocytes matured in vitro. METHODS We have evaluated the effects of 10 ng/ml EGF in combination with 1 or 10 IU/ml of gonadotrophins (FSH/hCG 1:1 ratio) during in vitro maturation (IVM) of marmoset oocytes. Immature cumulus-oocyte complexes (COCs) were retrieved from ovarian antral follicles of...

Follicle development can be divided into gonadotrophin-independent, gonadotrophin-responsive and gonadotrophin-dependent phases. The basic level of control of folliculogenesis lies with the actions of an extensively observed but poorly understood range of somatic and germ cell derived local factors that constitute an intrafollicular developmental cascade that regulates the proliferative and dif...