Epigen enhances the developmental potential of in vitro fertilized embryos by improving cytoplasmic maturation.

Numerous growth factors contribute to oocyte maturation and embryonic development in vivo; however, only a few are understood. One such factor is epigen, a new member of the epidermal growth factor (EGF) family that is secreted by the granulosa cells of immature oocytes. We hypothesized that epigen may play a role in oocyte maturation, specifically in the nuclear and cytoplasmic aspects. This study aimed to investigate the effects of epigen on porcine oocyte maturation and embryo development in vitro. In this study, three different concentrations of epigen (3, 6, and 30 ng/mL) were added to tissue culture medium-199 (TCM-199) during in vitro maturation of porcine oocytes. A control group that did not receive epigen supplementation was also included. Mature porcine oocytes were fertilized, and the resulting zygotes were cultured until day 7. The levels of intracellular glutathione (GSH) and reactive oxygen species (ROS) were measured in the in vitro matured oocytes. At the same time, the expression patterns of genes related to apoptosis were detected in day 7 blastocysts (BLs) using real-time quantitative PCR Apoptosis was detected by annexin-V assays in mature oocytes. Data were analyzed using ANOVA and Duncan's test on SPSS, and results are presented as mean ± SEM. The group that received 6 ng/mL epigen had a significantly lower rate of germinal vesicle breakdown (GVBD) than the control group without affecting the nuclear maturation among the experimental groups. Among the treatment groups, the 6 ng/mL epigen group showed significantly higher levels of intracellular GSH and lower ROS production. Supplementation with 6 ng/mL epigen significantly improved blastocyst (BL) formation rates compared to those in the control and 3 ng/mL groups. Additionally, the blastocyst expansion rate was significantly higher with epigen supplementation (6 ng/mL). In the fertilization experiment, the group supplemented with 6 ng/mL epigen exhibited significantly higher levels of monospermy and fertilization efficiency and lower levels of polyspermy than the control group. This study indicated that adding epigen at a concentration of 6 ng/mL can significantly enhance the developmental potential of porcine oocytes fertilized in vitro. Specifically, the study found that epigen improves cytoplasmic maturation, which helps prevent polyspermy and emulates monospermic penetration.

Transforming exciton dynamics in perovskite nanocrystal through Mn doping.

Zn-alloyed CsPb(Cl/Br)3 perovskite nanocrystals (PNCs) have been synthesized and used as a model system for Mn doping in order to understand the effect of Mn doping on exciton dynamics. While keeping the PL emission maximum and PLQY of both PNC samples nearly the same, the radiative decay rate of the host band decreases ∼6.5 times and the non-radiative decay rate increases ∼2.5 times upon Mn doping. Unlike reports in the literature in which the dopant emission decreases to near-zero, in the present case we observe ∼5.5-fold enhancement of the integrated PL intensity of the dopant emission when the temperature decreases from 290 K to 190 K. Interestingly, the FWHM of the host PL emission band increases with a decrease in temperature from 290 K to 190 K. A higher value of phonon energy in PNC2 (58 ± 2 meV) in comparison to CsPbBr3 has been noted. The low magnitude of the Huang-Rhys factor indicates less electron phonon coupling for the Mn-doped PNC system. Temperature-dependent dopant PL decay exhibits biexponential decay behaviour with time constants τ1 = 450-540 µs and τ2 = 1.1-1.2 ms. With a decrease in temperature from 290 K to 190 K, the amplitude of the faster component decreases from 80% to 60%; concomitantly, the amplitude of the slower component increases from 20% to 40%. Ultrasensitive single-particle spectroscopic analyses reveal that, although the probability density distributions (PDDs) of the durations of both ON and OFF events of PNC1 could be fitted with a truncated inverse power law (TIPL), however, for PNC2, both PDDs could be fitted with an inverse power law (IPL). A comparatively lower value of the power law exponent mON indicates a higher probability of longer ON events for PNC1 than for PNC2. Truncation in the PDDs of both ON and OFF events has been observed for PNC1, but not in the PDDs of either ON or OFF events for PNC2. The presence of shallow trap states is responsible for the truncation for PNC1, whereas the presence of deep dopant states does not allow truncation in the host PL emission of PNC2. All these observations clearly demonstrate that Mn doping transforms the host PL exciton dynamics for Zn-alloyed Mn-doped CsPb(Cl/Br)3 PNCs very significantly.

Global Dynamics of SARS-CoV-2 Infection with Antibody Response and the Impact of Impulsive Drug Therapy.

Mathematical modeling is crucial to investigating tthe ongoing coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) pandemic. The primary target area of the SARS-CoV-2 virus is epithelial cells in the human lower respiratory tract. During this viral infection, infected cells can activate innate and adaptive immune responses to viral infection. Immune response in COVID-19 infection can lead to longer recovery time and more severe secondary complications. We formulate a micro-level mathematical model by incorporating a saturation term for SARS-CoV-2-infected epithelial cell loss reliant on infected cell levels. Forward and backward bifurcation between disease-free and endemic equilibrium points have been analyzed. Global stability of both disease-free and endemic equilibrium is provided. We have seen that the disease-free equilibrium is globally stable for R0<1, and endemic equilibrium exists and is globally stable for R0>1. Impulsive application of drug dosing has been applied for the treatment of COVID-19 patients. Additionally, the dynamics of the impulsive system are discussed when a patient takes drug holidays. Numerical simulations support the analytical findings and the dynamical regimes in the systems.

Meta-analysis of HNF1A-MODY3 variants among human population.

Background: Previously, numerous case-control studies have highlighted variants responsible for Maturity onset diabetes of young (MODY). However, these studies have been conducted among diverse populations and hence yielded contradictory results. We, therefore, performed a meta-analysis to precisely find the association of SNPs with the disease for the HNF1A gene. Objective: Meta-analysis of clinically defined studies deciphering mutations in the HNF1A gene responsible for the development of MODY3 was conducted among various populations to determine associations using statistical approaches. Methods: The curation of 505 research articles published between the years 2000-2021 was carried out. Visualization of data-related protocols and statistical-analysis were conducted, which led to the identification of highly prevalent mutations among different populations (majorly Europe). Further comparison between the frequencies of the control (healthy population) and test (diseased population) dataset generated through curation was performed. Results: We identified nine MODY3 mutations (rs587776825, rs1169288, rs1800574, rs2464196, rs137853244, rs137853238, rs587780357, rs137853240 and rs137853243) at the genome-wide significance level ( p < 5.0 × 10-8). The present study confirmed that the data does not follow a normal distribution. Further, the data was confirmed to be a more homogenous type with frequencies having a significant association with the disease. Conclusion: This meta-analysis found significant associations of mutations in HNF1A with MODY3, consistent with previous studies. Our findings should help elucidate the mutations in a compiled form responsible for causing MODY3. Supplementary Information: The online version contains supplementary material available at 10.1007/s40200-022-00975-8.

COVID-19 outbreak and Urban dynamics: regional variations in India.

India was the second highest COVID-19 affected country in the world with 2.1 million cases by 11th August. This study focused on the spatial transmission of the pandemic among the 640 districts in India over time, and aimed to understand the urban-centric nature of the infection. The connectivity context was emphasized that possibly had inflicted the outbreak. Using the modes of transmission data for the available cases, the diffusion of this disease was explained. Metropolitans contributed three-fourths of total cases from the beginning. The transport networks attributed significantly in transmitting the virus from the urban containment zones. Later, there was a gradual shift of infections from urban to rural areas; however, the numbers kept increasing in the former. The massive reverse migration after lockdown spiked the infected cases further. Districts with airports reported more with influx of international passengers. A profound east-west division in April with higher infections in the southern and western districts existed. By mid-May eastern India saw a steep rise in active cases. Moran's I analysis showed a low autocorrelation initially which increased over time. Hotspot clustering was observed in western Maharashtra, eastern Tamil Nadu, Gujarat and around Kolkata by the second week of August. The diffusion was due to travel, exposure to infected individuals and among the frontline workers. Spatial regression models confirmed that urbanization was positively correlated with higher incidences of infections. Transit mediums, especially rail and aviation were positively associated. These models validated the crucial role of spatial proximity in diffusion of the pandemic.

Supplementation of fetal bovine serum increased the quality of in vitro fertilized porcine embryo.

OBJECTIVE: The present study aimed to explain the effect of fetal bovine serum (FBS) on the in vitro production of porcine embryos and the molecular effects of FBS on the growing of porcine embryos. MATERIALS AND METHODS: Immature porcine oocytes were matured and fertilized in vitro. The resulting zygotes were cultured in porcine zygotic medium-3- until day 7 and FBS was added on day 4. Without FBS, it was treated as a control group. Quantitative real-time PCR and 2',7'-dichloro-dihydro-fluorescein diacetate (H2DCFDA) molecular staining techniques were used to detect the expression patterns of apoptosis-associated genes and the accumulation of reactive oxygen species (ROS), respectively. Paired student's t-test was used by GraphPad Prism statistical software. RESULTS: FBS supplementation boosted blastocyst (BL) development and total cell count per BL substantially (p < 0.05). However, hatching and hatched BLs also increased in the FBS-treated group compared to the control. We also found that ROS accumulation in FBS-treated embryos was significantly reduced (p < 0.05) compared to the control group. The expression of the anti-apoptotic gene BCL-2 was significantly increased in FBS-treated BLs, but the pro-apoptotic gene, caspase-3 expression, was significantly reduced in FBS-treated BLs. CONCLUSION: Our results suggest that FBS supplementation in porcine culture media could increase porcine embryo production by decreasing ROS accumulation and increasing the anti-apoptotic gene expression in developing BLs.

Identification of patients at high risk of fragility fractures in an Indian clinical setting using FRAX.

A case-control study was done to decipher whether the FRAX tool was useful in India. Several values around the mean and median of the FRAX score of the case group were assessed to calculate sensitivity, specificity, positive predictive value, negative predictive value, Youden's index and odds ratio, and to detect high-risk individuals. PURPOSE: The Fracture Risk Assessment Tool (FRAX) appears useful to diagnose fragility fractures. The study aims to answer whether the FRAX tool has utility in India. METHODS: One hundred ten cases with a history of recent fragility fractures and 84 controls with no fractures were included in the study. FRAX scores without bone mineral density (BMD), and also with it, of participants were calculated. Several cutoff FRAX scores were chosen around mean and median FRAX score of cases. The odds ratio was calculated along with sensitivity, specificity, positive predictive value, negative predictive value and Youden's index. The most ideal cutoff was chosen to construct a hypothetical model to detect individuals at high risk. RESULTS: The FRAX score with BMD and without BMD exhibited relatively high specificity and moderate to low sensitivity implying that FRAX scores above cutoff have diagnostic value. Cutoffs at which FRAX score without BMD exhibited high specificity (> 90%) were chosen to construct a hypothetical model. Patients with FRAX score without BMD in the intermediate range be advised dual-energy X-ray absorptiometry (DEXA) followed by recalculation of FRAX score with BMD. DEXA scan T score less than - 2.5 or FRAX score with BMD above the cutoff at which specificity was high (> 80%) were included to construct the hypothetical model. Patients with low FRAX score could be followed up. The hypothetical model was applied to the case group to analyse its detection potential. CONCLUSION: FRAX has utility in India. It cuts the cost of screening and limits the use of expensive investigation.

Effect of porcine uterus as ex vivo model of fertilizing ability and gene expression pattern on blastocysts.

The success of in vitro embryo production demonstrates that the oviduct can be bypassed during early embryonic development. Using an ex vivo model of porcine uterus is one of the strategies used to investigate fertilization within the oviductal environment. In this study, in vitro-matured porcine oocytes (MII) were fertilized with 7.5 × 107, 15 × 107, or 30 × 107 sperm cells for 20 min in the oviduct of a porcine uterine ex vivo model. MII oocytes used for in vitro fertilization (IVF) served as control 1; those cultured in the oviduct of the ex vivo model for 20 min before IVF served as control 2. In present study, the penetration rate, polyspermy, and fertilization efficiency, and accumulated reactive oxygen species (ROS) levels in the treatment groups were significantly decreased compared to those in the control 1 group. During embryonic development, the cleavage rates in the treatment groups were significantly lower than those in the control groups. The cleavage rate in the 30 × 107 sperm cell-treated group was higher than that in the 7.5 × 107 sperm cell-treated group. The blastocyst formation rate in control 1 and 2, and 30 × 107 sperm cell-treated groups increased compared to that in the 7.5 and 15 × 107 sperm cell-treated groups. PCNA, HSP70.2, and GLUT1 were upregulated in the treatment groups and POU5F1, BAX, GPX1 were upregulated in the treatment and control 2 groups, compared to the control 1 group. These results suggest that an ex vivo model may decrease the penetration rate and fertilization efficiency by increasing the accumulated ROS levels and inducing the expression of apoptosis- and stress-related genes. However, the model improved the monospermy rate and expression of embryo developmental competence genes. This is the first study that evaluates the effect of an ex vivo model of porcine uterus on fertilization parameters, and the development of porcine embryos.

Embryotropic effects of vascular endothelial growth factor on porcine embryos produced by in vitro fertilization.

Current research suggests that supplementing in vitro culture (IVC) media with vascular endothelial growth factor (VEGF) may have beneficial effects on the development of porcine embryos in vitro. However, the molecular signaling mechanisms underlying this effect are unclear. Therefore, we aimed to investigate the effects of VEGF on molecular signaling events during in vitro embryonic development of porcine embryos. Porcine oocytes matured in vitro were fertilized, and the resultant zygotes were cultured with 5 ng/mL of VEGF supplemented with or without fetal bovine serum from day 4 till day 7. Without VEGF and/or FBS served as the control group. Real-time quantitative PCR was used to detect expression patterns of apoptosis- and oxidative stress-related genes in day 7 blastocysts (BLs). Early-stage apoptosis was detected by annexin-V assays in day 2 and day 7 embryos. We found that the addition of VEGF throughout the culture period with or without FBS supplementation significantly improved embryo survival and development. Supplementation with VEGF in the IVC medium significantly increased early BL formation (p < 0.05), although addition of FBS on day 4 significantly increased hatched BL formation (p < 0.05) regardless of VEGF supplementation. However, supplementation of media with both VEGF and FBS increased the formation of expanded BLs synergistically. The average total cell numbers per BL were significantly (p < 0.05) higher in embryos supplemented with VEGF and FBS than in those supplemented with either VEGF or FBS alone. We also found that accumulation of reactive oxygen species in VEGF-treated embryos was significantly lower (p < 0.05) than that in untreated embryos. The mRNA levels of caspase-3 were significantly lower (p < 0.05), and those of Bcl-2 and Nrf-2 were significantly higher (p < 0.05) in embryos grown in VEGF-supplemented media than in embryos grown in non-supplemented media. Furthermore, on day 2, the numbers of viable embryos (44.06 ±â€¯3.94%) and blastomeres (67.18 ±â€¯3.60%) were significantly higher (p < 0.05), and the numbers of early apoptotic embryos (55.94 ±â€¯3.94) and blastomeres (23.23 ±â€¯4.22) were significantly lower (p < 0.05) in VEGF-treated BLs than in controls. Furthermore, the numbers of early apoptotic cells in BLs on day 7 were also significantly lower (p < 0.05) in VEGF-treated BLs than in controls. Overall, our results indicate that supplementing IVC media with VEGF during in vitro culture of porcine embryos increases their developmental potential.

Evaluation of Percutaneous Vertebroplasty for Management of Symptomatic Osteoporotic Compression Fracture.

INTRODUCTION: Osteoporotic vertebral compression fractures are a leading cause of disability and associated morbidities among Indian population. Worldwide, approximately 20% of elderly population above 70 years and 16% of postmenopausal women are suffering from it. Vertebral compression fractures should be aggressively treated with minimally invasive techniques such as Percutaneous Vertebroplasty (PVP) or Percutaneous Kyphoplasty (PKP) to minimize pain and disability associated with it. AIM: To evaluate the PVP in terms of pain reduction and restoration of functional abilities among the patients suffering from symptomatic osteoporotic vertebral compression fracture. MATERIALS AND METHODS: PVP using polymethyl methacrylate bone cement was performed between 2011 to 2013, on 25 patients admitted for symptomatic osteoporotic vertebral compression fracture in the Department of Orthopaedics, Institute of Post Graduate Medical Education and Research (IPGMER) and SSKM Hospital, Kolkata, West Bengal, India. All of them were followed up for one year. Pain and disability were evaluated with Visual Analogue Scale (VAS) and Oswestry Disability Questionnaire (ODQ) score respectively. Repeated measures ANOVA with Bonferroni post-hoc test was applied for significance testing. RESULTS: Reduction in pain was reported by 56% of patients within 10 minutes of operation. Mean VAS score at presentation was 8.24 (±1.16). It reduced to 6.31 (±1.21) and 2.38 (±0.08) at immediate postoperative period and after 12 months respectively. There was significant reduction (p<0.05) in pain, as measured by VAS score, started at immediate postoperative period to end of follow up period up to one year. Disability, measured by ODQ score, significantly decrease (p<0.05) over time from one week to 12-month postoperatively. At presentation, ODQ score was 93.01 (±4.54). It reduced to 76.84 (±3.76), one week after operation and 16.23 (±1.17), one year after operation. CONCLUSION: The PVP with polymethayl methacrylate bone cement is still a justified treatment procedure for osteoporotic vertebral compression fractures as it provides excellent pain relief, internal stability to the fractured vertebra thus preventing further collapse and progression of kyphosis, allowing the patients to regain normal activity at the earliest, and at a very reasonable cost with minimal complication.

Cleavage pattern and survivin expression in porcine embryos by somatic cell nuclear transfer.

Mammalian embryos produced in vitro show a high rate of early developmental failure. Numerous somatic cell nuclear transfer (SCNT) embryos undergo arrest and show abnormal gene expression in the early developmental stages. The purpose of this study was to analyze porcine SCNT embryo development and investigate the cause of porcine SCNT embryo arrest. The temporal cleavage pattern of porcine SCNT embryos was analyzed first, and the blastocyst origin at early developmental stage was identified. To investigate markers of arrest in the cleavage patterns of preimplantation SCNT embryos, the expression of survivin-the smallest member of the inhibitor of apoptosis (IAP) gene family, which suppresses apoptosis and regulates cell division-was compared between embryos showing normal cleavage and arrested embryos. A total of 511 SCNT embryos were used for cleavage pattern analysis. Twenty-four hours post activation (hpa), embryos were classified into five groups based on the cleavage stage as follows; 1-cell, 2-cell, 4-cell, 8-cell and fragmentation (frag). In addition, 48 hpa embryos were more strictly classified into 15 groups based on the cleavage stage of 24 hpa; 1-1 cell (24 hpa-48 hpa), 1-2 cell, 1-4 cell, 1-8 cell, 1 cell-frag, 2-2 cell, 2-4 cell, 2-8 cell, 2 cell-frag, 4-4 cell, 4-8 cell, 4 cell-frag, 8-8 cell, 8 cell-frag, and frag-frag. These groups were cultured until 7 d post activation, and were evaluated for blastocyst formation. At 24 hpa, the proportion of 2-cell stage was significantly higher (44.5%) than those in the other cleavage stages (1-cell: 13.4%; 4-cell: 17.9%; 8-cell: 10.3%; and frag: 13.9%). At 48 hpa, the proportion of embryos in the 2-4 cell stage was significantly higher (32.4%) than those in the other cleavage stages (2-8 cell: 8.2%; 4-8 cell: 12.1%; and frag-frag: 13.9%). Some embryos arrested at 48 hpa (1-1 cell: 5.8%; 2-2 cell: 2.8%; 4-4 cell: 3.8%; 8-8 cell: 6.5%; and total arrested embryos: 18.9%). Blastocyst formation rates were higher in 2-4 cell cleavage group (20.2%) than in other groups. SCNT embryos in 2-4 cell stage showed stable developmental competence. In addition, we investigated survivin expression in porcine SCNT embryos during the early developmental stages. The levels of survivin mRNA in 2-cell, 4-cell stage SCNT embryos were significantly higher than those of arrested embryos. Survivin protein expression showed a similar pattern to that of survivin mRNA. Normally cleaving embryos showed higher survivin protein expression levels than arrested embryos. These observations suggested that 2-4 cell cleaving embryos at 48 hpa have high developmental competence, and that embryonic arrest, which may be influenced by survivin expression in porcine SCNT embryos.