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PubMedDate not supplied

Dermal ridge patterns and fertility in a Polish rural sample.

The relationship between ridge counts and pattern intensities on fingers, palms and soles, and number of pregnancies, number of surviving children, maternal age at birth of first child, and miscarriages was investigated in a rural Polish sample of 273 females. All subjects had completed their reproduction by the time of investigation and the use of contraceptives was negligible. Results show that females with a history of miscarriage have lower mean ridge counts on all fingers and lower pattern intensity on all fingers except V, with statistically significant differences for fingers III and IV. The results also suggest a relationship between the intensity of patterns on fingers II and V and in thenar areas, with the number of pregnancies and/or surviving offspring. The limitations of the present data and a need for more specific investigations are discussed.

Abortion, Spontaneous↗
PubMed1996

Very few couples remain voluntarily childless.

"The secular decline of fertility, which reached its bottommost level between the two world wars, went together with a rise in permanent infertility that was sometimes, in the ideological atmosphere of the time, ascribed to physiological factors, but obviously indicated that some couples were refusing to have children. The signs of a similar pattern in present-day France are much more discreet. Having emerged relatively recently, it is difficult to quantify, but the main problem is that sterility therapy now makes it more difficult to define once and for all a level of infertility beyond which we can speak of ¿refusal to have children'. In an attempt to do so, [the author] uses an impressive range of tools: analysis of vital registration and census data, of ad hoc and general surveys, methods of estimation to fill in the many gaps, fertility models and so on. It is a useful reminder that the understanding of fertility behaviour goes beyond the mere interpretation of individual intentions."

Birth Rate↗
PubMed1984

Black fertility patterns--Cape Town and Ciskei.

The reproductive and contraceptive experience of 491 Black women in urban and rural areas (Cape Town and Ciskei) is presented. The 'average woman' in the sample was 31 years old and first became pregnant by the age of 19,8 years; she had had 3,5 pregnancies, 2,9 living children and wished for 3,9 children. Family size was related to the level of education, degree of urbanization and age of the mother. A sizeable minority of the women experienced at least 1 miscarriage or the death of at least 1 child. Most of the women (65,5%) used some method of contraception between pregnancies, and 57% were using contraception when interviewed. All but 20,7% of those using contraception were receiving an injectable progestogen (Depo-Provera). In urban areas a significant minority used oral contraceptives or sterilization for contraception. Very few women used an intra-uterine contraceptive device. The results of our survey suggest that it is more difficult for the poor to maintain their desired family size. There is a need for family-planning services to be accessible to all, and especially to teenagers. The strongest motivation for a decrease in family size probably results from the settled family life and job opportunities which characterize urban life.

Adolescent↗
PubMed1997

Fertility regulation in nursing women. IX. Contraceptive performance, duration of lactation, infant growth, and bleeding patterns during use of progesterone vaginal rings, progestin-only pills, Norplant implants, and Copper T 380-A intrauterine devices.

This study evaluated the performance of progesterone vaginal rings (n = 187), progestin-only pills (n = 117), Norplant implants (n = 120), and Copper T 380-A intrauterine devices (n = 122) in lactating women. Contraceptive efficacy, bleeding pattern, and influence of the method upon breastfeeding duration and infant growth were compared with those of untreated women (n = 236) who relied on lactational infertility. Participants were healthy, 18 to 38 years, had had a normal delivery, and were intending to breastfeed for as long as possible. Contraceptives were initiated at day 57 +/- 3 postpartum. Results are reported for the first year of use. All methods were highly effective, with pregnancy rates below 1%. None affected breastfeeding performance or the rate of infant growth. Users of the progestin-only methods experienced a period of lactational amenorrhea 4 to 5 months longer than did users of Copper T or untreated women. More than half of the women in each contraceptive group reported a bleeding in the first month after treatment initiation, which was not considered in the calculation of the duration of amenorrhea. Prolonged or frequent bleedings were infrequent. The proportion of bleedings lasting more than 10 days ranged from 0 in the progestin-only pills group to 7% in the Norplant implants group. The four methods, initiated around the eighth postpartum week, provided effective contraception with no negative effects upon lactation or infant growth and without the bleeding problems associated with their use in nonlactating women.

Adult↗
PubMed2002

Reproductive responses of early postpartum dairy cattle to continuous treatment with a GnRH agonist (deslorelin) for 28 days to delay the resumption of ovulation.

An experiment was conducted to investigate the potential of chronic delivery of a potent GnRH agonist (deslorelin) via subcutaneous implants to delay the resumption of ovulatory cycles in postpartum dairy cattle. Cows received either a single deslorelin implant (n=40; DES) within 7 days of calving or were untreated (n=24; CON). Blood samples were collected thrice weekly during the period the implants were in place. Plasma concentrations of progesterone (P4) and 17beta-oestradiol (E2) were measured along with selected serum metabolites. Implants were removed after 28 days and cattle monitored daily for behavioral oestrus. Serial weekly blood samples were collected to detect the occurrence of ovulation. Cows were artificially inseminated as they were detected in oestrus from 30 days after implant removal. Pregnancy status was subsequently determined by manual palpation of uterine contents at strategic intervals. Insertion of implants induced ovulation in 3/40 cows as determined by a rise in progesterone 7 days later. Deslorelin implants delayed the onset of ovulatory cycles compared with untreated herdmates (mean 43.4+/-4.2 versus 57.3+/-1.6 days postpartum; P<0.001). A noticeable delay of at least 12 days was observed between implant removal and the first animals ovulating. Mean plasma E2 concentrations during the period the implants were in place were similar for DES and CON cows that experienced a prolonged spontaneous postpartum anoestrus (low P4 >60 days), although both groups had concentrations only 20% of CON cows that had ovulated prior to 30 days postpartum. The patterns of recovery following implant removal were highly variable. A number of DES cows showed a low and transient rise in plasma progesterone around 21 days after implant removal. Some cows displayed oestrus but did not appear to form a fully functional corpus luteum with this phenomenon being more prevalent among DES cows (7 of 37 versus 1 of 21; P<0.05). Overall, significantly more DES cows were detected in oestrus without ovulating compared to CON cows. Final pregnancy rates did not differ between DES and CON groups. The mean time to conception for DES cows was longer (21.2+/-5.6 versus 41.1+/-7.4 days, CON versus DES; P<0.01). This difference was not present if the time from first ovulation to conception was compared (50.5+/-5.3 versus 43.5+/-9.3 days, CON versus DES; P>0.05). Deslorelin implants provided a reliable method of inducing anoestrus when treatment was initiated prior to 3 days postpartum. A variable pattern of recovery was observed which delayed conception but did not ultimately reduce the final proportion pregnant at the completion of mating. The study demonstrates the potential of GnRH agonists to control postpartum reproductive function to manipulate the fertility of dairy cows.

Animals↗
PubMed2005

Cyclic FEE peptide increases human gamete fusion and potentiates its RGD-induced inhibition.

BACKGROUND: Alpha6beta1 integrin has been proposed to act as a sperm receptor on the mouse oocyte by interacting with spermatozoon fertilin beta. We investigated, in humans, whether oocyte integrins could act similarly in gamete fusion, using a cyclic peptide containing the putative disintegrin-binding domain of human fertilin beta [cyclic FEE (cFEE)] and RGD peptide. METHODS: Zona-free eggs were inseminated in the absence or presence of peptides. To maintain the membrane protein pattern, the zona pellucida was removed by microdissection. Immunofluorescence and confocal microscopy were used to detect integrin subunits on the oocyte. RESULTS: Unexpectedly, cFEE alone increased human gamete fusion by 94% instead of inhibiting fertilization. Furthermore, cFEE together with RGD potentiated the RGD-induced inhibition of fertilization in a dose-dependent manner. The data suggested the hypothesis of integrin cross-talk, further supported by the co-localization of alpha6beta1 and alphavbeta3 integrins, the putative receptors of cFEE and RGD peptides, respectively. CONCLUSIONS: RGD-sensitive and -insensitive integrins may be associated in a multimolecular complex working as a sperm receptor on the human oocyte membrane. Supplementation of human IVF culture medium with cFEE peptide might improve fertilization rates in ART.

ADAM Proteins↗
PubMed2003

The origin and maintenance of nuclear endosperms: viewing development through a phylogenetic lens.

The endosperm develops in fertilized ovules of angiosperms following fertilization of the central cell and nuclei in the female gametophyte. Endosperms differ in whether, and which, nuclear divisions are followed by cellular divisions; the variants are classified as cellular, nuclear or helobial. Functional correlates of this variation are little understood. Phylogenetic methods provide a powerful means of exploring taxonomic variation and phylogenetic patterns, to frame questions regarding biological processes. Data on endosperms across angiosperms were analysed in a phylogenetic context in order to determine homologies and detect biases in the direction of evolutionary transitions. Analyses confirm that neither all nuclear nor all helobial endosperms are homologous, raise the possibility that cellular development is a reversal in some derived angiosperms (e.g. asterids) and show that a statistically significant bias towards evolution of nuclear endosperms (and against reversals) prevails in angiosperms as a whole. This bias suggests strong selective advantages to having nuclear endosperm, developmental constraints to reversals or both. Homologies suggest that the microtubular cycle and cellularization pattern characteristic of reproductive cells across land plants may have been independently co-opted during multiple origins of nuclear endosperms, but information on cellular endosperms is essential to investigate further.

Cell Division↗
PubMed2002

When research knowledge is unwelcome: studying the health effects of in vitro fertilization.

OBJECTIVES: To illustrate the complexity of setting up evaluative research when it is perceived to threaten professional and financial interests. METHODS: A case study based on participatory observation of attempts to study the delivery and health consequences of in vitro fertilization (IVF). Two research projects were observed: one used well-baby clinic records and this project was completed; the other project aimed to use national data and record linkage to study the patterns of use of IVF, the IVF success rate, and the health effects on women and on children. This project could not be carried out as planned. The reasons for this were studied. Observations, documents and notes on discussions were analysed. RESULTS: IVF clinicians were not interested in the second project until faced with a concrete request to provide data. Tactics to avoid providing data included asking for more information on the project, transferring the request from one person to another, and arguing against the project. The arguments used and conditions set by different clinics were similar and centred around data confidentiality and authorship of the anticipated research reports. This case illustrated features that occur when health care is evaluated by non-clinicians: quarrels over mandate and ownership; and conflicts between the different research traditions of clinicians and epidemiologists. CONCLUSIONS: To facilitate evaluation by outsiders, new norms are needed and outside researchers need institutional back-up. Outside evaluation may need a determined push from health care funders and a cultural change within the clinical community itself.

Adult↗
PubMed2004

High quality sperm for nonhuman primate ART: production and assessment.

Factors that affect sperm quality can include method of semen collection, conditions for capacitation and whether or not agglutination is present. Media and procedures for sperm washing can also impair or improve sperm function in assisted reproductive technologies. For example, the removal of seminal fluid through large volume washing is required to eliminate decapacitation activity of seminal plasma. The forces involved with centrifugation and the metabolic stress of tightly pelleting sperm during washing procedures can have deleterious results. In contrast to human sperm, sperm from the most commonly used species of nonhuman primates, rhesus and cynomolgus macaques, do not spontaneously capacitate in vitro; rather, chemical activation with dibutryl cyclic AMP and caffeine is required. Recognizing motility patterns of non-activated and activated sperm can be accomplished with simple observation. After activation, sperm agglutination sometimes occurs and can interfere with sperm binding to the zona pellucida. Because nonhuman primate oocytes require a large investment to produce and currently, each animal can be hormonally stimulated a limited number of times, it is important to have means to evaluate quality prior to using sperm from a new male for in vitro fertilization. Methods for producing live, acrosome reacted sperm may also have application for ICSI. Because many genetically valuable males are now being identified, it may be necessary to individualize sperm preparation to accommodate male-to-male variation.

Animals↗
PubMed1986

Sonographic assessment of the endometrium in patients undergoing in vitro fertilization.

Sonography has an important role in the care of infertile patients undergoing in vitro fertilization. Unlike the ovarian follicle, sonographic changes in the endometrium during induction have not been extensively investigated. To determine whether changes in endometrial thickness or changes in endometrial texture would predict subsequent pregnancy, a randomized, double-blind review of 320 studies was performed. None of the endometrial patterns nor any particular change from one pattern to another during induction was predictive of subsequent pregnancy. Although differences in endometrial thickness between non-pregnant and subsequently pregnant patients were noted, on an individual basis, endometrial thickness was not a useful predictor.

Double-Blind Method↗
PubMed2003

FSH and LH-beta subunits in the preoptic nucleus: ontogenic expression in teleost.

In the present study we cloned, sequenced, and confirmed the presence of mRNAs of gonadotropins (FSH-beta, LH-beta subunits) from the brain and pituitary of tilapia, Oreochromis niloticus. Further, we examined the spatio-temporal expression pattern of FSH-beta and LH-beta in the brain and pituitary of two species of teleost (tilapia, O. niloticus; sockeye salmon, Oncorhynchus nerka), using in situ hybridization and immunological methods. The expression of FSH and LH immunoreactivity appeared simultaneously in the brain and pituitary (tilapia, 14 days; sockeye, 51 days after fertilization). In the pituitary, FSH mRNA and peptide expressing cells were distinct from LH expressing cells located in the ventral proximal pars distalis. In the brain, FSH and LH immunoreactivity was co-localized in cells of the preoptic nucleus parvocellularis, magnocellularis, and gigantocellularis. Fibers immunoreactive to FSH and LH antisera were seen along the forebrain-hypothalamus and in the neurohypophysis of the pituitary. Double-label immunofluorescence revealed FSH and LH immunoreactivity co-localized in arginine vasotocin synthesizing preoptic neurons. Our results show that FSH and LH-producing cells have developmental origins in the brain as well as in the pituitary. In addition, we propose that the brain-derived gonadotropins may function as hypophysiotropic hormones that regulate pituitary cells and along with arginine vasotocin could act as neuromodulators of reproductive behaviors.

Age Factors↗
PubMed1992

Effect of different culture techniques used to induce capacitation on the chromatin stability of human sperm.

To validate an in-vitro bioassay for assessing chromatin stability of human sperm, 38 semen samples from infertile men were studied using sodium dodecyl sulphate, an anionic detergent which disorganizes only the cytoplasmic membrane. Assay sensitivity was 50 sperm, whilst the within- and between-assay variation, and the between-observer variation were found to be within the accepted range for this type of bioassay. The influence of different in-vitro treatments currently used in some clinical assisted fertilization programmes was evaluated: a destabilizing effect occurred in Grade I (stable) and Grade III (swollen) sperm. In the former, all treatments reduced stable sperm; in the latter, a significant (P less than 0.001) increase in swollen sperm was shown with two methods that used Ham's F-10 as culture medium. Different chromatin patterns found in the treated sperm suggest the possibility that the recovered samples could be modified compared to their status at the time of isolation.

Biological Assay↗