Articles in This Issue
Abstract
Background: Recently the reproductive hormones, Anti-Mullerian hormone (AMH), activin A, and follistatin (FS) have been found to play an important role in folliculogenesis, oocyte maturation and corpus luteum function by changing the pattern of granulosa cell expression which in turn affects the success of fertilization potential. Objectives: To examine the relation of in vivo concentrations of AMH, activin A, and FS hormones on the ovaries status in the phases of menstrual cycle and to elucidate the relationship of these hormones with pregnancy rate following intrauterine insemination(IUI). Materials and methods: Seventy seven infertile couples were recruited from infertility clinic population at the High Institute for Infertility Diagnosis and Assisted Reproductive Technologies through the period from September 2011 to May 2012. Those infertile couples were divided to 3 groups according to the infertility cause (male factors causes, anovulatory causes and unexplained causes of infertility). Measurements of AMH, activin A, and FS hormones levels were done at cycle day (CD25-). Then measurements of activin A, and FS hormones levels were done only at preovulatory cycle(CD1214-) when the size of the Graffian follicle range between 1824-mm and at least one follicle was present and before hCG injection and at day 28 of the cycle (CD28). IUI was performed 3640- hours after hCG injection then measurement of the three hormones was performed after successful IUI. The result of successful pregnancy was recorded and statistical relation with AMH, activin A and FS hormones was assessed. Results: There was a positive significant correlation between endometrial thickness (ET) and pregnancy rate and the best ET to predict pregnancy is more than 7mm. There was no significant relation (P>0.05) between AMH level and pregnancy rate. A significant correlation was found between follistatin levels in preovulatory (CD 1214-) with a cutoff value 0.20ng/ml to predict pregnancy. There was a significant relation between activin-A level and pregnancy rate with a predictive cut off value 397.5 ng/ml on (CD 28) only. Conclusions: Activin-A can be regarded as a biomarker candidate for diagnosing very early pregnancy at luteal phase following IUI. Follistatin preovulatory (average CD13) has the most predictive value for pregnancy following IUI.
Abstract
Background: Polycystic ovary syndrome (PCOS) is the most common cause of hyperandrogenism anovulatory infertility; it affects 510-% of females in the reproductive age. PCOS is a risk disease; it has an association with gynecological malignancy. Objectives: To determine whether Cancer Antigen 125 (CA125) and Cancer Antigen 153-(CA153-) levels are increased in PCOS and possibility of CA125 and CA153- to be used as a diagnostic marker of PCOS. Methods: Seventyfemales with PCOS diagnosed depending on threecriteria: Menstrualhistoryofoligomenorrhea ultrasound examinations revealed polycystic ovaries and biochemical hyperandrogenism. Twenty normal fertile females serve as control group. Blood samples were obtained from all individuals from 2nd-4th day of menstrual cycle to measure levels of FSH, LH and testosterone.Second blood samples were collected from the same patients during late follicular phase to measure CA153- and CA125( by ELISA). Results: Females with PCOS and controls differed significantly(p< 0.05) in total serum testosterone (p). Females with PCOS and controls have highly significant difference (p < 0.001) in LH mean level (7.881.83+ vs 3.900.73+) respectivelyand, highly significant difference (p < 0.001) in LH/FSH ratio and BMI parameters. No significant differences (p > 0.05) were found in FSH, CA125 and CA153- between PCOS patients and the controls.There were positive correlation between testosterone and CA125.Negative correlation between testosterone and CA153- serum values. Conclusion: There were no changes in the serum levels of CA125andCA153- in PCOS patient at the age of reproduction and those cancer antigens could not be used as diagnostic markers for polycystic ovarian syndrome.
Abstract
Background: Polycystic ovary syndrome is the most common, yet complex, endocrine disorder with principal features of anovulation, amenorrhea, ovulation-related infertility, polycystic ovaries, and obesity. Number of metabolic aberrations is now well recognized as a growing public health problem in PCOS as glucose intolerance, hyperinsulinemia and dyslipidemia. Objective: To investigate and analyze the anthropometric, hormonal profile and metabolic abnormalities of obese and non-obese women with this disorder. Materials and Methods: Sixty-five healthy Iraqi women serves as the control group and eighty-four infertile women divided into two subgroups depending on the BMI (< and ≥30 kg/m2) were studied. BMI, waist to hip ratio and waist to thigh ratio were measured. Serum levels of luteinizing hormone, follicle stimulating hormone, estradiol, testosterone, fasting blood glucose, and oral glucose tolerance test, and total lipid profile were measured. Results: BMI, waist/hip, waist/thigh ratio were significantly higher in PCOS than control women. Lower FSH level, higher LH and E2 levels, LH/FSH ratio, and lower E2/testosterone ratio was found in obese and non-obese PCOS. Higher blood sugar level, high cholesterol, triglyceride, LDL, VLDL and lower HDL levels in PCOS compared to control women. Conclusion: Obesity is a common finding of women with PCOS, but it is not part of the diagnostic criteria. Women with PCOS usually have the so-called centralobesity (Visceral adiposity), and therefore tend to have an increased waist-hip ratio (WHR) and waist to thigh ratio, regardless of the weight factor (i.e., in obese and non-obese). PCOS patients exhibited abnormal hormonal status and biochemical indices also regardless of obesity.
Abstract
Background: The immune infertility caused by anti-sperm antibodies (ASAs) represented about 1020%- of infertility among the couples, the ASAs interfere with sperm parameters such as the sperm motility and sperm ability to penetrate cervical mucus, sperm-oocyte binding, and fertilization and embryo developments. Objectives: The present study designed to assess semen analysis, presence of ASAs and DNA fragmentation index as well as correlation within these parameters in normzoospermic Iraqi subjects Patients, Materials and Methods: A total number of Iraqi subjects (116) with range of age (2051-) years and their mean duration of infertility (4.70 ± 2.77). Seminal fluid for Macroscopic and Microscopic assessments done according to WHO 2010 criteria. The mixed agglutination reaction (MAR) test used to assess theirASAs in semen (direct method), seminal plasma and serum (indirect method); for the both IgG and IgA classes of antibodies and their distribution among different parts of spermatozoa as percentage. Results: The mean of IgG using direct method was (23.881.75±) and for indirect detection method the mean was (27.412.41±) with no significant difference (P<0.05) between the two methods. While the direct method for IgA detection mean (14.46 ±1.76) and the mean for indirect method of detection (6.860.39±) and there was significant difference (P>0.05) between the two methods. In addition to that, the distribution of IgG and IgA detected by direct method on sperm parts showed no significance difference except for the sperm tail; while the indirect method for IgA and IgG showed significant difference in distribution on sperm mid-piece. Conclusion: The correlation among sperm parameters and Immunoglobulin using direct and indirect methods showing variations in significance also in the correlation between the direct and indirect methods according to distributions on sperm surface
Abstract
ackground: Pretreatment of semen samples of the infertile patients and in vitro preparation techniques with the certain sperm stimulant agents prior to use for assisted reproductive techniques (ART) has been reported to have beneficial effects on pregnancy rates. Objectives: The objective of this study is to improve certain sperm function parameters in vitro of infertile patients semen by using novel combination motility stimulants substances that improved medium to be used for ART in future. Patients and Methods: One hundred infertile men involved in the current study. They were divided into four groups. Each semen sample was divided into four portions. One part was considered as a control and in vitro activated by using culture medium only. The other three portions were considered as treated groups and activated in vitro by adding pentoxifylline(PX,1mg/ml) and/or L-carnitine (LC,0.5mg/ml) to the culture media. Certain sperm function parameters were examined before and following in vitro activation using layering and sedimentation techniques. Results: The results showed a highly significant (P<0.001) improvement in the sperm concentration and percentage of progressive sperm motility grade(A), grade (B) and grade (A+B) with a highly significant (P<0.001) increase in the percentage of morphologically normal sperm (MNS) after addition of PX and/or LC to the culture medium in comparison with control medium using layering and sedimentation(layering under paraffin) techniques in the infertile patients. Conclusion: The results of this study indicate that adding 20%PXand/ or LC to the culture medium for in vitro sperm activation using layering and sedimentation techniques leads to an improvement in certain sperm function parameters.
Abstract
Background: Oocyte vitrification is a promising technique. The choice of appropriate types and concentrations of cryoprotectants is essential for the success of the oocytes vitrification. Objective: This study aimed to investigate the effect of vitrification on viability and morphology of oocytes and to compare the effect of several cryoprotectants on the viability and morphology of oocytes during vitrification and post-thawing. Methods: The sheep ovaries were collected from the local abattoir. Only normal and viable oocytes were included in this study. By using cryotop, immature oocytes that were viable with normal morphology were vitrified with 15% DMSO and 15% EG supplemented with 0.0 M, 0.25M, or 0.5 M of either sucrose or trehalose as control and treated groups. Oocytes viability and morphology were assessed post-aspiration and post-thawing. Results: Fromthe results of the present study, the percentage of post-thawing normal and viable oocyte reported with the use of 0.5M trehalose and EG in vitrification solution (VS) significantly)P<0.05) higher than the percentage of post-thawing normal and viable oocyte reported with use of 0.25 M trehalose and EG. Conclusion: Vitrification is simple technique and easy to perform but it needs some experience to prevent any oocyte loss during vitrification and thawing processing. The use of 0.5 M of either sucrose or trehalose in vitrification solution improves the percentage of post-thawing viable and normal oocytes.
Abstract
Background: Cadmium (Cd) is a heavy metal toxicant, present widely in our environment and workplaces.It is well known that cadmium causes adverse effects on male reproductive organs and reproductive functions in experimental animals. Objective: This experiment was designed to find out the effect of cadmium on some histological and hormonal parameters of the reproductive system of adult male rats. Methods: thirty mature albino male rat were used (Rattus rattus norvegicus albinus), as a mammalian model. these animals were divided into two groups, 15 rat / group after labeling them. The control group (G1) was orally administrated with distilled water during the 4 weeks period of the experiment and the experimental group (G2) was orally administrated with 20 ml cadmium chloride (200 mg/1L body weight) during the 4 weeks. First of all, the rat were anesthetized, after that blood aspiration using anesthetic cardiac puncture and the serum was separated and store at -20°C until assessment of FSH, LH and testosterone hormones. After that, the weight of reproductive organs (testis,epididymus and seminal vesicle) was recorded. These organs were fixed with 10% formal saline for histological study. Results: The statistical analysis shows a significant (P< 0.05) decrease in the weight of the testes and seminal vesicles when compared with control group. The results of the sperm parameters show a significant (P< 0.05) decrease in sperm concentration and a highly significant (p≤0.01) decrease in sperm motility in treated group as compared to control. The result of testicular sections in treated group shows a decrease in thickness of germ cells layer, widening of the central seminiferous tubules lumen and prominent germ cells population necrosis. Multiple vacuoles were seen within the tubules. Sertoli cells were abnormal in number and shape as compared to control. A peritubular fibrotic change had been seen also in the testicular sections. The result also shows a highly significant decrease in diameters of seminiferous tubules, primary spermatocytes, secondary spermatocytes, spermatids and increase in interstitial space when treated with cadmium compared with control group. The Levels of serum hormones shows a significant (P<0.05) decrease in the levels of testosterone and LH hormones mean in the treated group,while highly significant (ps0.01) increase in the FSH hormone mean in the treated group when compared to the levels mean of the hormone in the control group.. Conclusion: In conclusion, these findings suggest that cadmium administration with 20 ml cadmium chloride (200 mg/1L body weight) for 4 weeks during the adulthood induced damage in the reproductive organs and lead to impair the functions of sperm parameters and cause histological and hormonal alterations.
Abstract
Background: Superovulation in mice causes a delayed embryonic development in vitro and in vivo, an increased abnormal blastocyst formation, pronounced fetal growth retardation. Objective: Morphometric measurements the dimensions (thickness, length) of fetal kidney and suprarenal gland during the later intrauterine life, after superovulation induction. Methods: Twenty five mature female mice Swiss-Webster mice, these mice were divided into two groups: experimental (G1) (15animal/group) and control group(G2) (10 animal/group). Superovulation was induced by intraperitoneal (IP) injection of 7.5 IU of PMSG,then followed by 7.5 IU of HCG after 48 hours. Ovulation was taken place between 122± hours after injection of HCG. One mature male mice was placed with three superovulated female mice for mating. Pregnant females were sacrificed on gestational day eighteen in all experimental groups. For morphometric study 20 mice embryos were fixed in Bouin>s fixative, longitudinal sections of whole embedded embryo were stained by H&E, the specimens independently read. The dimensions (thickness, length) of fetal kidney and suprarenal gland were evaluated. Results: The statistical analysis showed significant decrease (P<0.01) in weights of fetuses in comparison with control group. The study was showed significant decrease (P< 0.01) in fetal kidney dimensions at day 18 of intrauterine life, when it compared to the fetal kidney of non superovulated group(control group). There was also significant decrease (P< 0.01) in the morphometric measurements of fetal suprarenal gland dimensions. Conclusion: The study improve that there is a delay in growth of kidney and suprarenal gland in fetal mice that belongs to mother undergo to superovulation induction before pregnancy.