A Single Cell Transcriptomic Fingerprint of Stressed Premature, Imbalanced Differentiation of Embryonic Stem Cells.

Background: Miscarriages cause a greater loss-of-life than cardiovascular diseases, but knowledge about environmentally induced miscarriages is limited. Cultured naïve pluripotent embryonic stem cells (ESC) differentiate into extra-embryonic endoderm/extraembryonic endoderm (XEN) or formative pluripotent ESC, during the period emulating maximal miscarriage of peri-implantation development. In previous reports using small marker sets, hyperosmotic sorbitol, or retinoic acid (RA) decreased naïve pluripotency and increased XEN by FACS quantitation.

Proteomic Profiles of Maternal Plasma Extracellular Vesicles for Prediction of Preeclampsia.

Problem: Preeclampsia is a heterogeneous syndrome of diverse etiologies and molecular pathways leading to distinct clinical subtypes. Herein, we aimed to characterize the extracellular vesicle (EV)-associated and soluble fractions of the maternal plasma proteome in patients with preeclampsia and to assess their value for disease prediction.

Method Of Study: This case-control study included 24 women with term preeclampsia, 23 women with preterm preeclampsia, and 94 healthy pregnant controls.

The interplay between oxidative stress, zinc, and metabolic dysfunction in polycystic ovarian syndrome.

Polycystic ovarian syndrome (PCOS) is a functional endocrine disorder characterized by hyperandrogenism, ovulatory dysfunction, and polycystic ovarian morphology that has been associated with chronic disease and comorbidities including adverse metabolic and cardiac disorders. This review aims to evaluate the role of oxidative stress and zinc in the metabolic dysfunction observed in PCOS, with a focus on insulin resistance. Recent studies indicate that oxidative stress markers are elevated in PCOS and correlate with hyperandrogenemia, obesity, and insulin resistance.

Deciphering maternal-fetal cross-talk in the human placenta during parturition using single-cell RNA sequencing.

Labor is a complex physiological process requiring a well-orchestrated dialogue between the mother and fetus. However, the cellular contributions and communications that facilitate maternal-fetal cross-talk in labor have not been fully elucidated. Here, single-cell RNA sequencing (scRNA-seq) was applied to decipher maternal-fetal signaling in the human placenta during term labor.

A review of nitric oxide and oxidative stress in typical ovulatory women and in the pathogenesis of ovulatory dysfunction in PCOS.

Polycystic ovary syndrome (PCOS) is a heterogeneous functional endocrine disorder associated with a low-grade, chronic inflammatory state. Patients with PCOS present an increased risk of metabolic comorbidities and often menstrual dysregulation and infertility due to anovulation and/or poor oocyte quality. Multiple mechanisms including oxidative stress and low-grade inflammation are believed to be responsible for oocyte deterioration; however, the influence of nitric oxide (NO) insufficiency in oocyte quality and ovulatory dysfunction in PCOS is still a matter for debate.

Immunosequencing and Profiling of T Cells at the Maternal-Fetal Interface of Women with Preterm Labor and Chronic Chorioamnionitis.

T cells are implicated in the pathophysiology of preterm labor and birth, the leading cause of neonatal morbidity and mortality worldwide. Specifically, maternal decidual T cells infiltrate the chorioamniotic membranes in chronic chorioamnionitis (CCA), a placental lesion considered to reflect maternal anti-fetal rejection, leading to preterm labor and birth. However, the phenotype and TCR repertoire of decidual T cells in women with preterm labor and CCA have not been investigated.

Determinants of Embryo Implantation: Roles of the Endometrium and Embryo in Implantation Success.

Both uterine endometrium and embryo contribute to implantation success. However, their relative role in the implantation success is still a matter for debate, as are the roles of endometrial receptivity analysis (ERA), endometrial scratch (ES), endometrial microbiome, and intrauterine or intravenous measures that are currently advocated to improve the implantation success. There is insufficient evidence to suggest that the endometrium is more important than the embryo in determining the implantation success and the utility of these measures, especially when euploid embryos are transferred is limited.

The Implications of Insufficient Zinc on the Generation of Oxidative Stress Leading to Decreased Oocyte Quality.

Zinc is a transition metal that displays wide physiological implications ranging from participation in hundreds of enzymes and proteins to normal growth and development. In the reproductive tract of both sexes, zinc maintains a functional role in spermatogenesis, ovulation, fertilization, normal pregnancy, fetal development, and parturition. In this work, we review evidence to date regarding the importance of zinc in oocyte maturation and development, with emphasis on the role of key zinc-binding proteins, as well as examine the effects of zinc and reactive oxygen species (ROS) on oocyte quality and female fertility.

Using high throughput screens to predict miscarriages with placental stem cells and long-term stress effects with embryonic stem cells.

A problem in developmental toxicology is the massive loss of life from fertilization through gastrulation, and the surprising lack of knowledge of causes of miscarriage. Half to two-thirds of embryos are lost, and environmental and genetic causes are nearly equal. Simply put, it can be inferred that this is a difficult period for normal embryos, but that environmental stresses may cause homeostatic responses that move from adaptive to maladaptive with increasing exposures.

Using Live Imaging and Fluorescence Ubiquitinated Cell Cycle Indicator Embryonic Stem Cells to Distinguish G1 Cell Cycle Delays for General Stressors like Perfluoro-Octanoic Acid and Hyperosmotic Sorbitol or G2 Cell Cycle Delay for Mutagenic Stressors like Benzo(a)pyrene.

Lowest observable adverse effects level (LOAEL) is a standard point-of-departure dose in toxicology. However, first observable adverse effects level (FOAEL) was recently reported and is used, in this study, as one criterion to detect a mutagenic stimulus in a live imager. Fluorescence ubiquitinated cell cycle indicator (FUCCI) embryonic stem cells (ESC) are green in the S-G2-M phase of the cell cycle and not green in G1-phase.

Using Live Imaging and FUCCI Embryonic Stem Cells to Rank DevTox Risks: Adverse Growth Effects of PFOA Compared With DEP Are 26 Times Faster, 1,000 Times More Sensitive, and 13 Times Greater in Magnitude.

Fluorescent ubiquitination-based cell cycle indicator (FUCCI) embryonic stem cells (ESCs), which fluoresce green during the S-G2-M phases, generate an S-shaped curve for the accumulation of cells during normal stemness (NS) culture with leukemia-inhibitory factor (LIF). Since it was hypothesized that a culture of ESCs was heterogeneous in the cell cycle, it was expected that increased S-G2-M-phases of the cell cycle would make an S-shaped curve parallel to the accumulation curve. Unexpectedly, it was observed that the fraction of FUCCI ESCs in green decreases over time to a nadir at ∼24 h after previous feeding and then rapidly enters S-G2-M-phases after medium change.

Genetic and Epidemiological Similarities, and Differences Between Postoperative Intraperitoneal Adhesion Development and Other Benign Fibro-proliferative Disorders.

Intraperitoneal adhesions complicate over half of abdominal-pelvic surgeries with immediate, short, and long-term sequelae of major healthcare concern. The pathogenesis of adhesion development is similar to the pathogenesis of wound healing in all tissues, which if unchecked result in production of fibrotic conditions. Given the similarities, we explore the published literature to highlight the similarities in the pathogenesis of intra-abdominal adhesion development (IPAD) and other fibrotic diseases such as keloids, endometriosis, uterine fibroids, bronchopulmonary dysplasia, and pulmonary, intraperitoneal, and retroperitoneal fibrosis.

Stress Decreases Host Viral Resistance and Increases Covid Susceptibility in Embryonic Stem Cells.

Stress-induced changes in viral receptor and susceptibility gene expression were measured in embryonic stem cells (ESC) and differentiated progeny. Rex1 promoter-Red Fluorescence Protein reporter ESC were tested by RNAseq after 72hr exposures to control stress hyperosmotic sorbitol under stemness culture (NS) to quantify stress-forced differentiation (SFD) transcriptomic programs. Control ESC cultured with stemness factor removal produced normal differentiation (ND).

Is There a Genetic Predisposition to Postoperative Adhesion Development?

Adhesions are permanent fibrovascular bands between peritoneal surfaces, which develop following virtually all body cavity surgeries. The susceptibility to develop, and the severity, of adhesions following intra-abdominal surgery varies within and between individuals, suggesting that heritable factors influence adhesion development. In this manuscript, we discuss the pathophysiology of adhesion development from the perspective of genetic susceptibility.

Successful Oocyte Retrieval, Fertilization, and Clinical Pregnancy with Low Serum -hCG on the Day of Oocyte Collection: A Reappraisal of the Definition of the Empty Follicle Syndrome.

Objective: To describe a case of successful oocyte retrieval, fertilization and clinical pregnancy despite very low -hCG level, twelve hours after ovulation trigger.

Design: Case report. .

Outcomes in subsequent pregnancies after wedge resection for interstitial ectopic pregnancy: a retrospective cohort study.

Objective: The objective of this study is to evaluate pregnancy outcomes in patients with a history of wedge resection for interstitial ectopic pregnancy (WRIEP).

Methods: Retrospective cohort study of pregnancies with a history of WRIEP from 2000 to 2013 at two inner city hospitals in Detroit, MI. Pregnant-matched controls (1:3) were selected and included patients with history of surgically treated tubal ectopic pregnancy and delivered patients without history of ectopic pregnancy.

The value of delaying hCG administration to enable maturation of medium-sized follicles in patients undergoing superovulation for IVF/ICSI.

Purpose: The purpose of the study is to determine whether continued stimulation of mature follicles to allow "catch up" growth of medium-sized follicles in assisted reproductive technology compromises the clinical pregnancy (CPR) and live birth (LBR) rates in IVF/ICSI cycles.

Methods: This retrospective cohort study reviewed 200 first IVF ± ICSI cycles out of a total of 340 cycles with complete data. Women underwent stimulation protocols with gonadotropins (Gn) and GnRH antagonist.

Using stem cell oxygen physiology to optimize blastocyst culture while minimizing hypoxic stress.

This review is a response to the Fellows Forum on testing 2% oxygen for best culture of human blastocysts (J Ass Reprod Gen 34:303-8, 1; J Ass Reprod Gen 34:309-14, 2) prior to embryo transfer. It is a general analysis in support of the position that an understanding of stem cell physiology and responses to oxygen are necessary for optimization of blastocyst culture in IVF and to enhance reproductive success in fertile women.

Low-Dose Urinary Human Chorionic Gonadotropin Is Effective for Oocyte Maturation in Fertilization/ Intracytoplasmic Sperm Injection Cycles Independent of Body Mass Index.

Background: Currently, there is no agreement on the optimal urinary derived human chorionic gonadotropin (u-hCG) dose requirement for initiating final oocyte maturation prior to oocyte collection in fertilization (IVF), but doses that range from 2500- 15000 IU have been used. We intended to determine whether low dose u-hCG was effective for oocyte maturation in IVF/intracytoplasmic sperm injection (ICSI) cycles independent of body mass index (BMI).

Materials And Methods: We retrospectively evaluated a cohort of 295 women who underwent their first IVF/ICSI cycles between January 2003 and December 2010 at the Division of Reproductive Endocrinology and Infertility, Wayne State University, Detroit, MI, USA.

Morbid obesity and outcome of ectopic pregnancy following capped single-dose regimen methotrexate.

Purpose: Evaluate whether morbid obesity influenced resolution, number of doses or ultimately surgical management of tubal ectopic pregnancy (TEP) when treated with single-dose regimen methotrexate (SDR-MTX) capped at 100 mg.

Methods: Retrospective cohort study of patients with a diagnosis of TEP who underwent MTX treatment from 2000 to 2013. Patients were excluded if initial β-hCG <1000 mIU/mL, did not have β-hCG follow-up or were not treated with SDR-MTX.

Risk-profiles and outcomes of multi-foetal pregnancies in adolescent mothers.

In this retrospective review of 468 mothers with a multi-foetal pregnancy in Detroit, we describe the risk-profiles and the obstetrical, maternal and foetal outcomes of multi-foetal pregnancy in 59 (13%) adolescents. Overall, most mothers were African American, did not have private insurance and all were unmarried. For most mothers, this was their first pregnancy (59.

Bone in The Endometrium: A Review.

To provide a comprehensive review of the published literature of patients with endo- metrial bone or osseous fragments with a view to critically examine the antecedent clinical presentation, investigations and prognosis after treatment. This systematic review of the literature includes full text articles of published case re- ports and cases series from the following computerized databases: PubMed, Ovid, and Medline between 1928 and 2013. We reviewed a total of 293 patients in 155 case reports and case series.

Informed Consent for Vaginal Delivery: Is It Time to Revisit the Shared Decision-Making Process?

Background: Vaginal delivery as we know it today has evolved, with increasing recognition of trauma to the pelvic floor and perineum. Evolutionary adaptation of the human female pelvis to vaginal deliveries brings with it many benefits, but risks still exist. These benefits and risks should be discussed with patients prior to delivery.

Comparison of 2, 5, and 20 % O2 on the development of post-thaw human embryos.

Purpose: The objective of this study is to investigate the effect of 2, 5, and 20 % O2 on post-thaw day 3 human embryo culture until blastocyst stage.

Methods: One hundred fifty-five day 3 human embryos were used. One hundred twenty out of 155 embryos were recovered after thawing.

Adhesion phenotype manifests an altered metabolic profile favoring glycolysis.

Objective: To determine whether metabolic markers are differentially expressed in normal and adhesion fibroblasts with and without hypoxia exposure.

Design: Prospective experimental study.

Setting: University research laboratory.