• Title/Summary/Keyword: reproductive biology

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Fertilization and pregnancy potential of immature oocytes from stimulated intracytoplasmic sperm injection cycles

  • Shin, Seung Bi;Cho, Jae Won;Lee, Sun-Hee;Yang, Kwang Moon;Lim, Chun Kyu;Lee, Hyoung-Song
    • Clinical and Experimental Reproductive Medicine
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    • v.40 no.1
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    • pp.7-11
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    • 2013
  • Objective: We evaluated the fertilization potential of immature oocytes obtained from controlled ovarian hyperstimulation cycles of patients undergoing ICSI. Methods: We retrospectively analyzed 463 ICSI cycles containing at least one immature oocyte at oocyte denudation. ICSI was performed on mature oocytes at oocyte denudation (metaphase-II [MII] oocytes) and the oocytes that extruded the first polar body between oocyte denudation and ICSI (MI-MII oocytes). Fertilization and early embryonic development were compared between MII and MI-MII oocytes. To investigate the pregnancy potential of MI-MII oocytes, the pregnancy outcome was analyzed in 24 ICSI cycles containing only immature oocytes at retrieval. Results: The fertilization rate of MI-MII oocytes (37.0%) was significantly lower than that of MII oocytes (72.3%). The rates of delayed embryos and damaged embryos did not significantly differ. Eighty-one immature oocytes were retrieved in 24 cycles that retrieved only immature oocytes and 61 (75.3%) of them were in the MI stage. ICSI was performed on 36 oocytes (59.0%) that extruded the first polar body before ICSI and nine MI-MII oocytes (25.0%) were fertilized. Embryo transfers were performed in five cycles. Pregnancy was observed in one cycle, but it ended in biochemical pregnancy. Conclusion: In ICSI cycles, oocytes that extruded the first polar body between denudation and ICSI can be used as a source of oocytes for sperm injection. However, their fertilization and pregnancy potential are lower than that of mature oocytes. Therefore, ovarian stimulation should be performed carefully for mature oocytes obtained at retrieval, especially in cycles with a small number of retrieved oocytes.

Comparison of the clinical outcomes of day 4 and 5 embryo transfer cycles

  • Lee, Sun-Hee;Lee, Hyoung-Song;Lim, Chun Kyu;Park, Yong-Seog;Yang, Kwang Moon;Park, Dong Wook
    • Clinical and Experimental Reproductive Medicine
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    • v.40 no.3
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    • pp.122-125
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    • 2013
  • Objective: The majority of embryo transfers (ETs) to date have been performed on day 3 to reduce the potential risk of developmental arrest of in vitro cultured embryos before ET. Development of sequential media has significantly improved culture conditions and allowed blastocyst transfer on day 5. While day 5 ET provides higher clinical pregnancy outcomes with reduced risks of multiple pregnancies, it still has potential risks of developmental arrest of IVF embryos. The aim of this study was to evaluate the clinical outcomes of day 4 ETs and compare the efficacy of day 4 ET with day 5 ET. Methods: From 2006 to 2009, a total of 747 fresh IVF-ET cycles were retrospectively analyzed (day 4, n=440 or and day 5, n=307). The cycles with any genetic factors were excluded. The rates of matured oocytes, fertilization, good embryos, and clinical pregnancy of the two groups were compared. The chi-square test and t-test were used for statistical analysis. Results: There were no significant differences between the two groups with respect to the mean age of the females and rates of matured oocytes. The pregnancy outcomes of day 4 ET (40.7%) were similar to those of day 5 ET (44.6%). The implantation rate of day 5 ET (24.2%) was significantly higher than that of day 4 ET (18.4%) (p=0.003). Conclusion: Day 4 ET can be chosen to avoid ET cancellation in day 5 ET resulting from suboptimal circumstances in the IVF laboratory, but the decremented quality of embryos for transfer and the decreased pregnancy rate must be taken into consideration.

Analysis of Factors Affecting Survival and Pregnancy Rate in Frozen-thawed Embryo Transfers (동결수정란 이식주기에서 수정란 융해 후 생존율과 임신율에 영향을 미치는 요인)

  • Kim, Jeong-Wook;Byun, Hye-Kyung;Youm, Hye-Won;Jun, Jin-Hyun;Park, Yong-Seog;Song, In-Ok;Song, Ji-Hong;Choi, Bum-Chae;Koong, Mi-Kyoung;Jun, Jong-Young;Kang, Inn-Soo
    • Clinical and Experimental Reproductive Medicine
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    • v.27 no.1
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    • pp.59-65
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    • 2000
  • Objective: The purpose of this study was to determine the important factors affecting survival and pregnancy rate in frozen-thawed embryo transfer cycles. Methods: we performed retrospective analysis in 738 cycles of frozen-thawed embryo transfers, in relation to the insemination methods, the freezing stage of embryo, patient's age, infertility factors and the origin of injected sperm in ICSI cycles. After conventional IVF or ICSI, the supernumerary PN stage zygotes or multicellular embryos were cryopreserved by slow freezing protocol with 1,2-propanediol (PROH) as a cryoprotectant. Results: The survival rates of thawed embryos were 69.3% (1585/2287) in conventional IVF group and 71.7% (1645/2295) in ICSI group. After frozen-thawed embryo transfers, 27.0% (92/341) and 32.0% (109/341) of pregnancy rates were achieved in conventional IVF and ICSI group, respectively. There were no significant difference in the survival and pregnancy rates according to the insemination methods, the freezing stage and patient's age. However, the pregnancy rate (36.2%) of male factor infertility was significantly higher than the tubal (27.2%) and other female factor infertility (22.9%). In ICSI group, the origin of injected sperm did not affect the outcome of frozen-thawed embryo transfer cycles. Conclusion: The present study demonstrates that acceptable clinical outcomes can be achieved after the transfer of frozen-thawed embryos regardless of the stage of embryos for freezing, the patient's age and the origin of injected sperm.

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Cichorium intybus L. extract ameliorates testicular oxidative stress induced by lead acetate in male rats

  • Dorostghoal, Mehran;Seyyednejad, Seyyed Mansour;Nejad, Marzieh Noroozi Tabrizi
    • Clinical and Experimental Reproductive Medicine
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    • v.47 no.3
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    • pp.161-167
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    • 2020
  • Objective: Oxidative stress has been suggested as a possible mechanism for the adverse effects of heavy metal toxicity on male reproduction. Cichorium intybus L. is used in Iranian folk medicine as a hepatoprotective agent as well as for its supposed fertility-enhancing properties. The present study was performed to investigate whether the ethanolic extract of C. intybus leaves could protect male rats against lead-induced testicular oxidative stress. Methods: In this experimental study, adult Wistar rats were treated with 0.1% lead acetate in drinking water alone or with 50, 100, or 200 mg/kg body weight of C. intybus extract via gavage once daily for 70 days. The weight of their reproductive organs, levels of serum hormones, histometric parameters of the seminiferous tubules, epidydimal sperm quality, and oxidative stress status were evaluated. Results: The testis weight, seminiferous tubule diameter, epididymal sperm count, serum testosterone level, and testicular levels of superoxide dismutase and glutathione peroxidase were significantly reduced (p< 0.05) in the lead-treated rats. Moreover, significantly (p< 0.05) higher levels of malondialdehyde were observed in the lead-exposed group compared to the control. However, the co-administration of C. intybus ethanolic extract in lead-treated rats was associated with a significant improvement in reproductive parameters. Conclusion: We conclude that C. intybus leaf extract has the potential to prevent lead-induced testicular toxicity and to suppress the adverse effects of lead on male reproductive health.

Analysis of Some Korean Terminologies on the Reproductive Structures of Seed Plants in Plant Morphology (식물형태학에서 사용하는 종자식물의 생식구조에 관한 한글 용어의 분석)

  • Lee, Kyu Bae
    • Journal of Integrative Natural Science
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    • v.1 no.3
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    • pp.195-209
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    • 2008
  • Some Korean terminologies on reproductive structures of seed plants in plant morphology, written incorrectly in many books, were analysed to propose accurately expressed terminologies. 31 books in areas such as general biology, plant biology, plant morphology, and biological dictionaries and glossaries were selected to analyse the accuracy of the terminologies for reproductive structures in gymnosperms, e.g., cone or strobilus, seed (or ovulate) cone and pollen cone, and conifer(s) or coniferous plants, and for flower structures in angiosperms, e.g., corolla, anther, filament, pistillate (or female) flower and staminate (or male) flower, apocarpous, and syncarpous. The definition and etymology of the terminologies were traced in 4 textbooks of plant anatomy and 2 dictionaries of biology and botany written in English. On the basis of the definition, etymology, and principles for terminology formation according to the International Organization for Standardization (ISO 704:2000), reasonably expressed Korean terminologies were proposed. All of the 8 terminologies examined in this study were included in the glossary of biological terminologies, published by the Korean Association of Biological Sciences in 2005, and designated as an editorial source for science and biology textbooks for middle and high schools by Ministry of Education in 2007. However, the only 1 of the 8 terminologies described in the glossary were consistent with the proposed expression in the present study. These inconsistencies indicated the need for a reassessment of this glossary of biological terminologies. The newly proposed terminologies would facilitate mutual understanding between teachers and students of plant biology.

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