Sperm chromatin/DNA damage can be measured by a variety of assays. However, it has been reported that these tests may lose prognostic value in Assisted Reproductive Technology (ART) cycles when assessed in post-prepared samples, possibly due to the normalizing effect promoted by sperm preparation procedures. We have recently implemented a modified version of the Diff-Quik staining assay that al...

BACKGROUND Density gradient is the preferred technique for sperm processing for ART. However, no study has examined sperm quality using different processing media simultaneously and under identical conditions. Therefore, we evaluated semen quality following sperm preparation by three commonly used commercially available density gradient media in a well-designed controlled trial. METHODS We ob...

A standardized cytological preparation of mature mouse sperm has been devised to serve as an in vitro system for probing the intra-ooplasmic molecular events of transformation of the fertilizing sperm. Two parameters of the early phase of transformation in vivo are defined at the resolution of the light microscope: deletion of sperm-unique nuclear proteins, detectable by immunofluorescence, and...

Background Sperm preparation before assisted reproductive techniques is very important for obtaining successful fertilization and pregnancy. During ICSI technique, sperms are selected based on viability and morphology. But this selection did not guarantee integrity of sperm DNA. Therefore, novel sperm selection procedures are introduced for selection of sperm with low DNA damage. One of these p...

The aim of our research was to examine the ability of density gradient preparation BoviPure and swim up method on bull sperm separation and in vitro embryo production (IVP) systems. Frozen/thawed semen from six Simmental bulls was pooled and treated using both methods. The sperm motility, concentration, membrane activity, membrane integrity and acrosomal status were evaluated and compared befor...

Infertility affects one in seven couples who are trying to conceive (Lamb & Lipshultz, 2000; Brugh & Lipshultz, 2004). Decreased semen quality, a measure of the ability of semen to achieve fertilisation, is a primary cause of male infertility. Usually, poor semen quality is characterised by low sperm motility and viability. Assisted reproductive techniques (ART) such as intra-uterine inseminati...

Assisted reproductive techniques (ARTs) have become the treatment of choice in many cases of infertility; however, the current success rates of these procedures remain suboptimal. Programmed cell death (apoptosis) most likely contributes to failed ART and to the decrease in sperm quality after cryopreservation. There is a likelihood that some sperm selected for ART will display features of apop...

A comprehensive study is presented of a series of 124 infertile men undergoing testicular sperm retrieval for intracytoplasmic sperm injection (ICSI). In this study we correlated the histological changes observed in the testicular tissue with the results of the wet preparation and the outcome after ICSI using testicular spermatozoa. In all patients with normal spermatogenesis and hypospermatoge...

Complex chromosome rearrangements (CCRs) are structural aberrations involving three or more breakpoints on two or more chromosomes. These CCRs result in a high rate of chromosome imbalances potentially leading to subfertility and congenital abnormality. In this study, we analysed meiotic segregation in the sperm of a patient with a familial CCR 46, XY,t(1;19;13)(p31;q13.2;q31)mat included in an...

BACKGROUND The aim of this study was to evaluate the non-genomic action of thyroxin on sperm kinetic and its probable use to improve sperm recovery after applying an en- richment method like "swim-up" in comparison with the available one, pentoxifylline. MATERIALS AND METHODS This is an experimental study. A total of 50 patients were re- cruited, followed by infertility consultation. Conventi...