BACKGROUND There is concern that IVF and/or ICSI might have an adverse effect on embryonic development via epigenetic alterations. Such alterations might also be involved in the sex-related growth differences in preimplantation embryos found in some animal species. In the present study we analysed cell numbers of human male and female surplus embryos that developed to the blastocyst stage after...

With the introduction of intracytoplasmic sperm injection (ICSI), couples with severe male factor infertility have achieved fertilization and clinical pregnancy rates comparable to other in-vitro fertilization (IVF) patients. However, failure of fertilization still occurs in some patients despite the utilization of microsurgical sperm injection techniques. How such fertilization failure after I...

BACKGROUND The purpose of this study was to investigate the chromosomal complement and developmental potential of in-vitro matured murine oocytes following ICSI by human sperm. METHODS Heterologous ICSI fertilization between mouse oocytes and human sperm was employed in order to overcome the reduced fertilization rates observed after conventional IVF due to zona hardening during in-vitro matu...

BACKGROUND This study compares the fertilization rate and embryonic development of oocytes randomly inseminated by conventional IVF or ICSI in patients with polycystic ovarian syndrome (PCOS) and normozoospermic semen during IVF cycles. METHODS Sibling oocytes were randomized to be inseminated either by ICSI or IVF. Fertilization rate (two pronuclei/COC), day 2 embryonic morphology and rate o...

BACKGROUND The Y chromosome gr/gr microdeletion eliminates two copies of the DAZ gene and several additional transcriptional units and has been associated as a risk factor for infertility. Our objective was to study the presence of the gr/gr deletion in ICSI candidates in our population and to determine whether the laboratory, clinical and ICSI outcome were different in the gr/gr deleted patien...

The impact of intracytoplasmic sperm injection (ICSI) on cryopreserved zygotes and embryos was evaluated by comparing embryo survival and implantation between embryos derived from ICSI and those derived from standard insemination procedures. The study included patients whose excess zygotes and embryos were cryopreserved between September 1993 and December 1994 and who subsequently underwent a f...

BACKGROUND To date, information on the pubertal development of adolescents born after ICSI is scarce, since the very first cohort is only now reaching young adulthood. In this study, pubertal development at the age of 14 was characterized in a longitudinally followed cohort of ICSI-conceived teenagers and compared with that of a spontaneously conceived (SC) control group. METHODS Pubertal dev...

Background: Intracytoplasmic Sperm Injection (ICSI) is one of the methods of assisted reproductive technology that aims to successfully treat male factor infertility in humans and domestic animals. The technique involves mechanically injecting a single sperm or sperm nucleus with the help of a micromanipulator into the cytoplasm of a mature metaphase II oocyte. Results: In domestic animals, ICS...

A couple with unexplained infertility was referred for routine IVF and ICSI treatment. Ovulation was induced by the GnRH analogue protocol combined with HMG and HCG. Preparation of denuded oocytes revealed a major disorder of the zona pellucida and abnormal oocytes. During preparation of ova for ICSI, 15 retrieved oocytes were denuded, 14 of which underwent ICSI treatment. Four of the oocytes c...

Intracytoplasmic sperm injection (ICSI) is not only used in human assisted reproduction (ART), but it is also widely employed for veterinary in vitro fertilization during rare species preservation, germ-line rescue of transgenic animals or for any veterinary assisted conception. Piezo-assisted ICSI, which was first described in 1995 [1], can be employed for assisted conception in animals in whi...