COVID-19 and human reproduction: A pandemic that packs a serious punch.
Syst Biol Reprod Med
; 67(1): 3-23, 2021 Feb.
Article
in English
| MEDLINE | ID: covidwho-1132358
ABSTRACT
The COVID-19 pandemic has led to a worldwide health emergency that has impacted 188 countries at last count. The rapid community transmission and relatively high mortality rates with COVID-19 in modern times are relatively unique features of this flu pandemic and have resulted in an unparalleled global health crisis. SARS-CoV-2, being a respiratory virus, mainly affects the lungs, but is capable of infecting other vital organs, such as brain, heart and kidney. Emerging evidence suggests that the virus also targets male and female reproductive organs that express its main receptor ACE2, although it is as yet unclear if this has any implications for human fertility. Furthermore, professional bodies have recommended discontinuing fertility services during the pandemic such that reproductive services have also been affected. Although increased safety measures have helped to mitigate the propagation of COVID-19 in a number of countries, it seems that there is no predictable timeline to containment of the virus, a goal likely to remain elusive until an effective vaccine becomes available and widely distributed across the globe. In parallel, research on reproduction has been postponed for obvious reasons, while diagnostic tests that detect the virus or antibodies against it are of vital importance to support public health policies, such as social distancing and our obligation to wear masks in public spaces. This review aims to provide an overview of critical research and ethics issues that have been continuously emerging in the field of reproductive medicine as the COVID-19 pandemic tragically unfolds.Abbreviations ACE2 angiotensin- converting enzyme 2; ART Assisted reproductive technology; ASRM American Society for Reproductive Medicine; CCR9 C-C Motif Chemokine Receptor 9; CDC Centers for Disease Control and Prevention; COVID-19 Coronavirus disease 2019; Ct Cycle threshold; CXCR6 C-X-C Motif Chemokine Receptor 6; ELISA enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay; ESHRE European Society of Human Reproduction and Embryology; ET Embryo transfer; FSH Follicle Stimulating Hormone; FFPE formalin fixed paraffin embedded; FYCO1 FYVE And Coiled-Coil Domain Autophagy Adaptor 1; IFFS International Federation of Fertility Societies; IUI Intrauterine insemination; IVF In vitro fertilization; LH Luteinizing Hormone; LZTFL1 Leucine Zipper Transcription Factor Like 1; MAR medically assisted reproduction services; MERS Middle East Respiratory syndrome; NGS Next Generation Sequencing; ORF Open Reading Frame; PPE personal protective equipment; RE RNA Element; REDa RNA Element Discovery algorithm; RT-PCR Reverse=trascriptase transcriptase-polymerase chain reaction; SARS Severe acute respiratory syndrome; SARS-CoV-2 Severe Acute Respiratory Syndrome Coronavirus 2; SLC6A20 Solute Carrier Family 6 Member 20; SMS Single Molecule Sequencing; T Testosterone; TMPRSS2 transmembrane serine protease 2; WHO World Health Organization; XCR1 X-C Motif Chemokine Receptor.
Keywords
Full text:
Available
Collection:
International databases
Database:
MEDLINE
Main subject:
Reproduction
/
Host-Pathogen Interactions
/
Fertility
/
SARS-CoV-2
/
COVID-19
Type of study:
Diagnostic study
/
Observational study
/
Prognostic study
Topics:
Vaccines
Limits:
Animals
/
Humans
Language:
English
Journal:
Syst Biol Reprod Med
Journal subject:
Reproductive Medicine
/
Urology
Year:
2021
Document Type:
Article
Affiliation country:
19396368.2020.1855271
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