Influence of the number of washings for embryos on non-invasive preimplantation chromosome screening results.

Objective: To explore the effect of varying numbers of embryo washings prior to blastocyst formation in non-invasive preimplantation chromosome screening (NICS) on the accuracy of NICS results. Methods: In this study, 68 blastocysts from preimplantation genetic testing (PGT)-assisted pregnancy were collected at our institution. On the fourth day of embryo culture, the embryos were transferred to a new medium for blastocyst culture and were washed either three times (NICS1 group) or ten times (NICS2 group). A trophectoderm (TE) biopsy was performed on the blastocysts, and the corresponding embryo culture media were collected for whole genome amplification (WGA) and high-throughput sequencing. Results: The success rate of WGA was 100% (TE biopsy), 76.7% (NICS1 group), and 89.5% (NICS2 group). The success rate of WGA in embryo medium on days 5 and 6 of culture was 75.0% (33/44) and 100% (24/24), respectively. Using TE as the gold standard, the karyotype concordance rate between the results of the NICS1 and NICS2 groups' embryo culture medium samples and TE results was 43.5% (10/23) and 73.5% (25/34), respectively. The sensitivity and specificity of detecting chromosomal abnormalities were higher in the NICS2 group than in the NICS1 group when TE was used (83.3% vs 60.0%; 62.5% vs 30.8%, respectively). The false-positive rate and false-negative rate (i.e., misdiagnosis rate and missed diagnosis rate, respectively) were lower in the NICS2 group than in the NICS1 group (37.5% vs 69.2%; 16.7% vs 40.0%, respectively). Conclusion: The NICS yielded favorable results after ten washings of the embryos. These findings provide a novel method for lowering the amount of cell-free DNA contamination from non-embryonic sources in the medium used for embryo development, optimizing the sampling procedure and improving the accuracy of the NICS test.

Apigenin exerts protective effect and restores ovarian function in dehydroepiandrosterone induced polycystic ovary syndrome rats: a biochemical and histological analysis.

BACKGROUND: Polycystic ovarian syndrome (PCOS) is one of the major causes encouraging the elevation of androgens, obesity along with menstrual complications. Here we study the effect of Apigenin in rat model of polycystic ovarian syndrome. METHODS: Female Sprague Dawley (SD) rats were treated with Dehydroepiandrosterone (DHEA) (6 mg/100g) opting the post-pubertal approach for developing rat model of polycystic ovarian syndrome, Metformin was used as standard. The treatments were given for 21 days along with coloproctological analysis. After the treatment regimen, the biochemical analysis was carried in plasma samples, whereas the ovaries were submitted for histopathological analysis. RESULTS: The treatment of DHEA resulted in disturbed lipid profile and anti-oxidant status along with increased weight, ovarian diameter and cysts in rats confirming the development of PCOS. However, treatment of Apigenin showed ameliorative effect by improving the lipid profile and anti-oxidant status, the treatment also normalised the body weight, reduced ovarian diameter, cysts and restored the healthy follicles compared to control rats. The treatment of Apigenin also suppressed the levels of oestradiol and testosterone compared to control group, also, levels of progesterone were increased in Apigenin treated group of rats. The treatment of Apigenin suppressed the levels of inflammatory cytokines TNF-α and IL-6. It was observed that the effect of Apigenin were to some extent parallel to standard drug Metformin. CONCLUSION: The findings confirmed that Apigenin ameliorates the disturbed hormonal levels, lipid profile and antioxidant status in PCOS rats.

Risk factors of pregnancy failure in elderly infertility patients undergoing human assisted reproductive technology.

OBJECTIVE: To investigate the risk factors of pregnancy failure in elderly infertile patients undergoing human assisted reproductive technology (ART). METHODS: A total of 565 infertile patients undergoing ART were selected and divided into failed pregnancy group (127 cases) and continued pregnancy group (438 cases). Their clinical data were collected, and the influencing factors of pregnancy failure were assessed and compared by univariate and multivariate analysis. RESULTS: The success and failure rates of in vitro fertilization-embryo transfer (IVF-ET) in pregnant women were 79.44% and 20.56%, while those of intracytoplasmic sperm injection (ICSI) were 75.96% and 24.04%, respectively. There was no remarkable difference between them (all P>0.05). Women's age, numbers of embryos transferred and previous abortion history in the failed pregnancy group were higher than those in the continued pregnancy group, while the number of high-quality embryos, BMI and endometrial thickness (EMT) on human chorionic gonadotropin (hCG) day in the former were lower (all P<0.05). CONCLUSION: The risk factors of ART pregnancy failure in elderly infertility patients are related to woman's age, numbers of embryos transferred, previous pregnancy abortion history, numbers of high-quality embryos and EMT on hCG day.

Synergistic and protective effect of atorvastatin and amygdalin against histopathological and biochemical alterations in Sprague-Dawley rats with experimental endometriosis.

The aim of the present study was to evaluate the protective effects of combined atorvastatin and amygdalin in a rat model of endometriosis. Tumor necrosis factor-α (TNF-α), interleukin-6 (IL-6), matrix metalloproteinase-2 (MMP-2) and MMP-9 levels in the peritoneal fluid were determined. The expression of TNF-α, IL-6, MMP-2, and MMP-9 mRNA, and the levels of lipid peroxidation, reduced glutathione (GSH), superoxide dismutase (SOD), catalase, and glutathione peroxidase (Gpx) were measured. Histopathological analysis was also conducted. The results showed that peritoneal TNF-α, IL-6, MMP-2, and MMP-9 levels were reduced by > 50%, and mRNA expression was decreased. Lipid peroxidation was considerably reduced, while GSH, SOD, Gpx, and catalase levels increased by > 40%. Reductions in leukocyte infiltration and fibrosis following treatment were also observed. Thus, our study suggested that combined treatment consisting of atorvastatin and amygdalin attenuates endometriosis. A detailed investigation of molecular mechanism of atorvastatin and amygdalin in endometriosis is needed.