'Two countries-two labs': the transnational gamete donation (TGD) programme to support egg donation.

Purpose: To evaluate the effectiveness, efficiency, and safety of a transnational gamete donation (TGD) programme based on the shipping of vitrified donor oocytes.

Methods: A retro-prospective observational study was conducted in the Assisted Reproductive Technology Center of the University Hospital of Florence, Italy. The study population included 622 consecutive donor oocyte cycles.

Scanning Acoustic Microscopy (SAM): A Robust Method for Defect Detection during the Manufacturing Process of Ultrasound Probes for Medical Imaging.

The main aim of this paper is to provide the feasibility of non-destructive testing (NDT) method, such as scanning acoustic microscopy (SAM), for damage detection in ultrasound (US) probes for medical imaging during the manufacturing process. In a highly competitive and demanding electronics and biomedical market, reliable non-destructive methods for quality control and failure analysis of electronic components within multi-layered structures are strongly required. Any robust non-destructive method should be capable of dealing with the complexity of miniaturized assemblies, such as the acoustic stack of ultrasonic transducers.

Redox status assessment in infertile patients with non-obstructive azoospermia undergoing testicular sperm extraction: A prospective study.

Background: Oxidative stress (OS) is one of the most prevalent causes of sperm damage, through the toxic effects of endogenously generated hydrogen peroxide, superoxide anion, and hydroxyl radicals. Peripheral leukocytes represent a feasible model for studying the pathophysiology of OS-mediated homeostasis, which can be responsible for cell dysfunction and cell injury.

Objective: To evaluate the redox status in patients with non-obstructive azoospermia (NOA), establishing the potential role exerted by reactive oxygen species (ROS) in the genesis of testicular secretory injury.

Impact of advanced paternal age on the intracytoplasmic sperm injection (ICSI) outcomes in donor egg cycles.

Background: The purpose of this study is to assess the impact of paternal age on the oocyte-donation outcomes in intracytoplasmic sperm injection (ICSI) cycles.

Methods: Two hundred and seventy-eight infertile couples were retrospectively involved. Inclusion criteria were: infertility from almost 1 year, normal or sub-fertile seminal parameters, overall oocyte survival rate greater than 85%.

Successful pregnancy in double factor infertility: Sperm in vitro culture by modified testicular fine-needle aspiration.

Introduction: Infertility may depend up to 27% of couples on both partners. In patients with obstructive azoospermia, testicular fine-needle aspiration represents a good option to retrieve spermatozoa, in order to perform an assisted reproductive treatment. In vitro maturation of testicular spermatozoa could be the better choice of treatment in view of the increased motility, improving fertilization and pregnancy rates.

Male Inflammatory Parameters Are not Useful to Predict the Outcomes of Intracytoplasmic Sperm Injection: Results from a Cross-Sectional Study.

Purpose: The relationship between male systemic inflammation and fertility seems intriguing, but no data about its impact on the assisted reproductive technology outcomes has been reported. Here, we aimed to evaluate the prognostic role of male systemic inflammatory parameters in intracytoplasmic sperm injection (ICSI) outcomes prediction, in couples undergoing an ovum donation program.

Materials And Methods: From January 2016 to December 2017, one hundred-ten couples were considered for this cross-sectional study.

Novel method of histopathological analysis after testicular sperm extraction in patients with nonobstructive and obstructive azoospermia.

Objective: To assess whether the "testicular pool" could be used for histological analysis and whether it gave more accurate information than the standard testicular biopsy.

Methods: Between January 2017 and March 2018, this single-center prospective study included 60 azoospermic men undergoing conventional bilateral testicular sperm extraction. Six samples were excised from each testicle and transferred to an embryologist.

Optimization of Gas Sensors Based on Advanced Nanomaterials through Split-Plot Designs and GLMMs.

This paper deals with the planning and modeling of a split-plot experiment to improve novel gas sensing materials based on Perovskite, a nano-structured, semi-conductor material that is sensitive to changes in the concentration of hazardous gas in the ambient air. The study addresses both applied and theoretical issues. More precisely, it focuses on (i) the detection of harmful gases, e.

A Biochemical Approach to Detect Oxidative Stress in Infertile Women Undergoing Assisted Reproductive Technology Procedures.

Oxidative stress plays a major role in critical biological processes in human reproduction. However, a reliable and biologically accurate indicator of this condition does not yet exist. On these bases, the aim of this study was to assess and compare the blood and follicular fluid (FF) redox status of 45 infertile subjects (and 45 age-matched controls) undergoing in vitro fertilization (IVF), and explore possible relationships between the assessed redox parameters and IVF outcomes.

Optimization of Perovskite Gas Sensor Performance: Characterization, Measurement and Experimental Design.

Eight different types of nanostructured perovskites based on YCoO 3 with different chemical compositions are prepared as gas sensor materials, and they are studied with two target gases NO 2 and CO. Moreover, a statistical approach is adopted to optimize their performance. The innovative contribution is carried out through a split-plot design planning and modeling, also involving random effects, for studying Metal Oxide Semiconductors (MOX) sensors in a robust design context.