The expression and function of focal adhesion kinase (FAK) in human decidual cells were investigated. This kinase is localized to focal adhesions in fibroblasts, and is phosphorylated on tyrosine in normal and src-transformed fibroblasts. Immunofluorescent staining revealed that the cultured decidual cells expressed high levels of FAK at the cell periphery. Double stainings for FAK and phosphot...

The source and nature of zona lytic factors during zona escape of hamster blastocyts were investigated. When cultured in hamster embryo culture medium (HECM)-2h, all 8-cell embryos (n = 135) developed to zona escaped-blastocysts with complete zona lysis. In addition, 2-cell embryos, when co-cultured with zona escaping-blastocysts (at a ratio of 1:10), exhibited zona lysis. Various other embryos...

OBJECTIVE To assess the effect of implementing different previtrification interventions on the postwarming DNA integrity of vitrified blastocysts. DESIGN Prospective in vitro study. SETTING Center for Reproductive Medicine laboratory in a tertiary hospital setting. ANIMALS A total of 70 expanded and 46 nonexpanded mouse blastocysts were used for the study. INTERVENTION(S) [1] Twenty-two...

BACKGROUND The purpose of this study was to examine the effects on blastocyst survival and subsequent pregnancy rate of 'artificial shrinkage' (i.e. induced collapse of the blastocoele) before vitrification of human blastocysts. METHODS After embryo transfer in IVF cycles, surplus embryos that developed to the expanded blastocyst stage were cryopreserved. Before vitrification on electron micr...

This study examined a new method for vitrification of blastocysts that is safe, simple and easy to learn and use. Current vitrification techniques have shortcomings that include the use of dimethyl sulphoxide, one of the more toxic cryoprotectants, and minute containers that are difficult to handle and are usually open to contamination. Cell handling and loading times are very short, which allo...

Epigenetic mechanisms such as DNA methylation regulate genomic imprinting and account for the distinct non-equivalence of the parental genomes in the embryo. Chromosomal aneuploidy, a major cause of infertility, distorts this highly regulated disparity by the presence or absence of chromosomes. The implantation potential of monosomy embryos is negligible compared to their trisomy counterparts, ...

BACKGROUND Recent advancement in both human embryology and preimplantation genetic screening has created a completely new situation for human assisted reproduction. Embryos, typically at blastocyst stage, are biopsied and screened by DNA microarray or next-generation sequencing before cryopreservation, and then euploid embryos are warmed for transfer. Increased embryo implantation rates have be...

In this study, the effect of heat shock on frozen-thawed blastocysts was evaluated using in vitro-produced (IVP) bovine embryos. In experiment 1, the effects of 6 h of heat shock at 41.0 C on fresh blastocysts were evaluated. HSPA1A expression as a reflection of stress was increased by heat shock (P < 0.05), but the expressions of the quality markers IFNT and POU5F1 were not affected. In experi...

BACKGROUND There is concern that IVF and/or ICSI might have an adverse effect on embryonic development via epigenetic alterations. Such alterations might also be involved in the sex-related growth differences in preimplantation embryos found in some animal species. In the present study we analysed cell numbers of human male and female surplus embryos that developed to the blastocyst stage after...

The objective was to determine whether the hatching stage of cattle and swamp buffalo somatic cell nuclear-transferred (SCNT) blastocysts affected cryosurvival after vitrification, and whether addition of linoleic acid-albumin (LAA) to the IVC medium and Ficoll to the vitrification solution improves cryosurvival. Fused couplets were activated with ethanol and cycloheximide-cytochalasin D (day 0...