Heat shock protein 27 (Hsp27) is a heat shock protein family member which can inhibit apoptosis. Our previous studies reported down-regulated Hsp27 in ovarian tissue derived from women with polycystic ovary syndrome (PCOS) however, the exact effect of Hsp27 on oocyte maturation and developmental competence in PCOS is unclear. The effect of Hsp27 over-expression was studied in vitro using oocyte...

introduction: astrocytes, the most abundant glia in the central nervous system, modulate neuronal survival and function. astrocytic functions are mediated by synthesis and secretion of wide ranges of polypeptides through mechanism (s) poorly understood. among these, tgfβs are synthesized and released by the astrocytes. in this study, the involvement of wnt signaling pathway on the synthesis of ...

Abstract Study question Does hyaluronidase (HAse) have possible negative or positive effects on cumulus cells (CCs) during oocyte denudation before ICSI by altering midkine (MK) levels? Summary answer Hyaluronidase inhibits the proliferation of CCs via inhibition MK activity which may result in poor embryo quality and low success. What is known already abundantly expressed ovarian follicles. se...

Phospholipase C zeta (PLCζ) is a candidate sperm-borne oocyte activating factor (SOAF) which has recently received attention as a potential biomarker of human male infertility. However, important SOAF attributes of PLCζ, including its developmental expression in mammalian spermiogenesis, its compartmentalization in sperm head perinuclear theca (PT) and its release into the ooplasm during fertil...

BACKGROUND Infertility affects between 10 and 16% of couples worldwide. Twenty to 30% of cases of infertility are due to a male factor, 20-35% to a female factor, and 25-40% are due to both male and female factors. In ∼10-25% of cases, the precise underlying cause remains unclear. IVF or ICSI followed by embryo transfer can be very appropriate treatment options in cases of female tubal damage, ...

objective: cryopreservation of ovarian tissue or follicles has been proposed as an alternative method for fertility preservation. although successful vitrification of follicles has been reported in several mammalian species, the survival rate is generally low. the aim of this study was to investigate the effects of fibroblast growth factor (fgf) and epidermal growth factor (egf) on in vitro pre...

Background: In this study we evaluate the effects of different doses of GDF9 with fixed dose of BMP15 on quality of in vitro maturated sheep oocytes. Materials and Methods: Good ovine Cumulus-oocyte complexes (COCs) were first transferred to Pre-IVM medium, and then to three IVM mediums supplemented with 10%v/v BMP15 and: 1) 175 ng/ml 2) 131 ng/ml or 3) 219 ng/ml GDF9. After maturation period, ...

BACKGROUND Leptin, as a 16 kDa adipokine, is a pleiotropic cytokine-like hormone that primarily secreted from adipose tissue. It also involves in the regulation of energy homeostasis, neuroendocrine function, immunity, lipid and glucose homeostasis, fatty acid oxidation, angiogenesis, puberty and reproduction. The aim of this study was to investigate the effects of in vitro addition of leptin t...

this study investigated the effect of different harvesting techniques on the recovery rate and quality of bovine cumulus oocyte complexes (cocs) and their subsequent developmental competence including in vitro maturation, fertilization and blastocyst formation. the cocs were retrieved from slaughter ovaries using aspiration, slicing, or aspiration followed by slicing. the cocs were examined mic...