Oocyte transfer can be used to obtain pregnancies from mares in which embryo transfer is unsuccessful. Transfer of oocytes in a group of older mares with long histories of infertility resulted in pregnancies from 13% (6/46) of cycles, 23% (6/26) of oocyte transfers, and 38% (6/16) of cycling donors. Noncycling, hormone-treated mares were suitable oocyte recipients. With continued modifications,...

The female infertility is a complex phenomenon that at least in part resides in the manifestation, possible perturbations and interplay of innate and adaptive immunity, with the participation of apoptotic and reactive oxygen species pathways, and some paracrine factors as causative and implementing factors in this process. The spread of the assisted reproduction technologies provided an unseen ...

With fertilization, the paternal and maternal contributions to the zygote are not equal. The oocyte and spermatozoon are equipped with complementary arsenals of cellular structures and molecules necessary for the creation of a developmentally competent embryo. We show that the nucleolus is exclusively of maternal origin. The maternal nucleolus is not necessary for oocyte maturation; however, it...

BACKGROUND Polycystic ovary syndrome (PCOS) is a common endocrine and metabolic disorder in women. The developmental competence of oocytes and embryos in PCOS patients is reduced to a certain extent (comparing to non-PCOS patients, the high quality embryo rate was decreased by 16% from the data of our centre) during the in vitro fertilization (IVF) process. Cross-talk between the oocyte and cum...

In many organisms, the transition from oocyte to embryo occurs in the absence of mRNA transcription. Therefore, early developmental programs rely on maternal mRNAs and proteins that are synthesized during oogenesis. The regulated translation of maternal RNAs is essential for the proper deployment of regulatory factors during early embryogenesis. Recent studies suggest that the degradation of ma...

The aim of this study was to elucidate possible relationships between ultrasound indices of follicular blood flow, oocyte recovery and the subsequent production and morphological quality of preimplantation embryos. A total of 27 women with bilateral tubal occlusion, undergoing treatment for infertility by in-vitro fertilization and embryo transfer, contributed data from 29 cycles. Transvaginal ...

This study examined the effects of human menopausal gonadotrophin (HMG) or human chorionic gonadotrophin (HCG) priming on cumulus-oocyte complex (COC) morphology, oocyte maturation and embryo development in patients undergoing in-vitro maturation (IVM) cycles. The patients were primed with nothing (group 1), low-dose HMG (group 2) or 10,000 IU HCG (group 3) before oocyte retrieval. COC with dis...