Decreasing the dose of human chorionic gonadotropin (hCG) used to trigger final oocyte maturation in assisted reproductive technology programs is regarded as a useful intervention in the prevention of ovarian hyperstimulation syndrome, but the minimal effective dose has not been yet identified. In this study, the capacity of a reduced dose of recombinant hCG (r-hCG) to provide adequate oocyte m...

BACKGROUND Iatrogenic transmission of human prion disease can occur through medical or surgical procedures, including injection of hormones such as gonadotropins extracted from cadaver pituitaries. Annually, more than 300,000 women in the United States and Canada are prescribed urine-derived gonadotropins for infertility. Although menopausal urine donors are screened for symptomatic neurologica...

Ovarian hyperstimulation syndrome (OHSS) is the price patients pay for our attempt to override nature’s delicate balances that were created to assure a single oocyte ovulation. Spontaneous OHSS does occur, as we delineate later. It is, however, very rare. Indeed, natural-cycle-based assisted reproductive technologies (ART) were responsible for the birth of the first IVF baby; however, this meth...

This review describes briefly the beneficial use of two vaccines developed by us for treatment of cancers. The vaccine against Luteinizing Hormone Releasing Hormone (LHRH) is effective in carcinoma of prostate as well as in breast cancers dependent on androgens and estrogens respectively. LHRH being identical in both males and females, the same vaccine is usable in both Prostate and Breast ster...

BACKGROUND The glycosylation of recombinant proteins can be altered by a range of parameters including cellular metabolism, metabolic flux and the efficiency of the glycosylation process. We present an experimental set-up that allows determination of these key processes associated with the control of N-linked glycosylation of recombinant proteins. RESULTS Chinese hamster ovary cells (CHO) wer...

The C-terminal region of the beta subunit of the human chorionic gonadotrophin (hCG) is implied in heterodimer stability (beta26-110 disulphide bridge), in vitro LH bioactivity (region beta102-110) and in in vivo LH bioactivity (beta CTP). Like the hCG beta, the equine eLH and eCG beta subunits, also possess a C-terminal extension (CTP). But, in contrast to hCG, eLH and eCG bind to both LH and ...

BACKGROUND Isolation of the first neoplastic acquired immunodeficiency syndrome-related Kaposi's sarcoma (KS) cell line (KS Y-1) has furthered understanding of the pathogenesis of KS. Studies with KS Y-1 cells have indicated that inhibition of KS cell proliferation occurs in early pregnancy in mice and after treatment with certain commercial preparations of human chorionic gonadotropin (hCG, a ...

Intensive FSH stimulation is a key tool of assisted reproduction technology but can cause severe complications through the development of an excessive number of small ovarian follicles. We tested the hypothesis that, in the late stages of ovulation induction, LH activity in the form of low-dose human CG (hCG) can stimulate and selectively modulate ovarian follicle function and growth, independe...