Reduced ovarian cholesterol and steroid biosynthesis along with increased inflammation are associated with high DEHP metabolite levels in human ovarian follicular fluids.

The plasticizer di(2-ethylhexyl) phthalate (DEHP) is known to have endocrine-disrupting properties mediated by its many metabolites that form upon exposure in biological systems. In a previous study, we reported an inverse association between DEHP metabolites in the human ovarian follicular fluid (FF) and the responsiveness of the follicles to controlled ovarian stimulation during in vitro fertilization (IVF) treatments. Here, we explored this association further through molecular analysis of the ovarian FF samples.

Associations between lifestyle factors and levels of per- and polyfluoroalkyl substances (PFASs), phthalates and parabens in follicular fluid in women undergoing fertility treatment.

Background: Concerns have been raised whether exposure to endocrine-disrupting chemicals (EDCs) can alter reproductive functions and play a role in the aetiology of infertility in women. With increasing evidence of adverse effects, information on factors associated with exposure is necessary to form firm recommendations aiming at reducing exposure.

Objective: Our aim was to identify associations between lifestyle factors including the home environment, use of personal care products (PCP), and dietary habits and concentrations of EDCs in ovarian follicular fluid.

Would you consider donating your left-over embryos to treat Parkinson's disease? Interviews with individuals that underwent IVF in Sweden.

Background: Parkinson's disease (PD) has been considered to be one of the most promising target diseases for forthcoming cell-based therapy. The aim of this study is to explore the views of individuals with cryopreserved embryos on using human embryonic stem cells for treating PD.

Methods: The study was performed as a qualitative, semi-structured interview study in June-October 2020.

Association between chemical mixtures and female fertility in women undergoing assisted reproduction in Sweden and Estonia.

Objective: Women of reproductive age are exposed to ubiquitous chemicals such as phthalates, parabens, and per- and polyfluoroalkyl substances (PFAS), which have potential endocrine disrupting properties and might affect fertility. Our objective was to investigate associations between potential endocrine-disrupting chemicals (EDCs) and female fertility in two cohorts of women attending fertility clinics.

Methods: In a total population of 333 women in Sweden and Estonia, we studied the associations between chemicals and female fertility, evaluating ovarian sensitivity index (OSI) as an indicator of ovarian response, as well as clinical pregnancy and live birth from fresh and frozen embryo transfers.

Follicular fluid and blood levels of persistent organic pollutants and reproductive outcomes among women undergoing assisted reproductive technologies.

Persistent organic pollutants (POPs) are industrial chemicals resistant to degradation and have been shown to have adverse effects on reproductive health in wildlife and humans. Although regulations have reduced their levels, they are still ubiquitously present and pose a global concern. Here, we studied a cohort of 185 women aged 21-43 years with a median of 2 years of infertility who were seeking assisted reproductive technology (ART) treatment at the Carl von Linné Clinic in Uppsala, Sweden.

Suspect and non-target screening of ovarian follicular fluid and serum - identification of anthropogenic chemicals and investigation of their association to fertility.

In this work, ultra-high performance liquid chromatography-high resolution (Orbitrap) mass spectrometry-based suspect and non-target screening was applied to follicular fluid ( = 161) and serum ( = 116) from women undergoing fertilization in order to identify substances that may be associated with decreased fertility. Detected features were prioritized for identification based on (i) hazard/exposure scores in a database of chemicals on the Swedish market and an in-house database on per- and polyfluoroalkyl substances (PFAS); (ii) enrichment in follicular fluid relative to serum; and (iii) association with treatment outcomes. Non-target screening detected 20 644 features in follicular fluid and 13 740 in serum.

Measuring success in IVF is a complex multidisciplinary task: time for a consensus?

The goal of an IVF cycle is the birth of at least one baby per intention to treat. However, IVF cannot confer competence on an embryo, but only can provide each couple with a safe treatment to meet a predetermined chance of success. This commentary highlights how clinical, financial and patient-centred perspectives should be included in the definition of success in IVF.

DNA methylation differences at birth after conception through ART.

Study Question: Is there a relation between ART and DNA methylation (DNAm) patterns in cord blood, including any differences between IVF and ICSI?

Summary Answer: DNAm at 19 CpGs was associated with conception via ART, with no difference found between IVF and ICSI.

What Is Known Already: Prior studies on either IVF or ICSI show conflicting outcomes, as both widespread effects on DNAm and highly localized associations have been reported. No study on both IVF and ICSI and genome-wide neonatal DNAm has been performed.

Safeguarding Female Reproductive Health against Endocrine Disrupting Chemicals-The FREIA Project.

Currently available test methods are not well-suited for the identification of chemicals that disturb hormonal processes involved in female reproductive development and function. This renders women's reproductive health at increasing risk globally, which, coupled with increasing incidence rates of reproductive disorders, is of great concern. A woman's reproductive health is largely established during embryonic and fetal development and subsequently matures during puberty.

The Uppsala-Stockholm Assisted Reproductive Techniques (UppStART) study.

Purpose: The Uppsala-Stockholm Assisted Reproductive Techniques (UppStART) study is a prospectively recruited sample of couples undergoing assisted reproduction in Stockholm and Uppsala county in Sweden. The study was initiated to (1) investigate possible changes in the epigenetic profile of infants inferred through the ART procedures and their consequence and (2) to assess the impact of lifestyle and health exposures on treatment outcome.

Participants: Recruitment took place between September 2011 and December 2013, and in vitro fertilisation (IVF) cycles initiated and pregnancies conceived during this time were followed until December 2014.

Short- and long-term effect of contraceptive methods on fecundity.

The aim of the study was to compare the effect of previously used contraceptive methods on women's short- and long-term fecundity. Use of hormonal contraception (HC) was compared with the use of a contraceptive mobile application (app). This real-life prospective observational study comprised 2874 women who were attempting to become pregnant using the Natural Cycles mobile app to monitor their fertility.

Construction and validation of a prediction model to minimize twin rates at preserved high live birth rates after IVF.

Research Question: Elective single-embryo transfer (eSET) at blastocyst stage is widely used to reduce the frequency of multiple pregnancies after IVF. There are, however, concerns about increased risks for the offspring with prolonged embryo culture. Is it possible to select embryos for transfer at the early cleavage stage and still achieve low twin rates at preserved high live birth rates?

Design: A prediction model (PM) was developed to optimize eSET based on variables known 2 days after oocyte retrieval (fresh day 2 embryo transfers; double-embryo transfers 1999-2002 (n=2846) and SET 1999-2003 (n=945); n total=3791).

Differences in secretome in culture media when comparing blastocysts and arrested embryos using multiplex proximity assay.

Objectives: The aim of this study was to assess different patterns of the human embryo secretome analysed as protein levels in culture media. Furthermore, analyses to correlate protein levels with quality and timing to development of human embryos were performed.

Material And Methods: Human day-2 cryopreserved embryos were cultured for four days in an EmbryoScope with a time-lapse camera, and embryo quality was evaluated retrospectively.

A prospective investigation of perceived stress, infertility-related stress, and cortisol levels in women undergoing in vitro fertilization: influence on embryo quality and clinical pregnancy rate.

Introduction: Women undergoing fertility treatment experience high levels of stress. However, it remains uncertain if and how stress influences in vitro fertilization (IVF) cycle outcome. This study aimed to investigate whether self-reported perceived and infertility-related stress and cortisol levels were associated with IVF cycle outcomes.

Does ovarian stimulation regimen affect IVF outcome? a two-centre, real-world retrospective study using predominantly cleavage-stage, single embryo transfer.

In this study, ovarian stimulation using highly purified human menopausal gonadotrophin (HP-HMG) and recombinant FSH (rFSH) for IVF were compared in two large assisted reproduction technique centres in Sweden. A total of 5902 women underwent 9631 oocyte retrievals leading to 8818 embryo transfers (7720 on day 2): single embryo transfers (74.2%); birth rate per embryo transfer (27.

Reduced live-birth rates after IVF/ICSI in women with previous unilateral oophorectomy: results of a multicentre cohort study.

Study Question: Is there a reduced live-birth rate (LBR) after IVF/ICSI treatment in women with a previous unilateral oophorectomy (UO)?

Summary Answer: A significantly reduced LBR after IVF/ICSI was found in women with previous UO when compared with women with intact ovaries in this large multicentre cohort, both crudely and after adjustment for age, BMI, fertility centre and calendar period and regardless of whether the analysis was based on transfer of embryos in the fresh cycle only or on cumulative results including transfers using frozen-thawed embryos.

What Is Known Already: Similar pregnancy rates after IVF/ICSI have been previously reported in case-control studies and small cohort studies of women with previous UO versus women without ovarian surgery. In all previous studies multiple embryos were transferred.

Which factors are most predictive for live birth after in vitro fertilization and intracytoplasmic sperm injection (IVF/ICSI) treatments? Analysis of 100 prospectively recorded variables in 8,400 IVF/ICSI single-embryo transfers.

Objective: To construct a prediction model for live birth after in vitro fertilization/intracytoplasmic sperm injection (IVF/ICSI) treatment and single-embryo transfer (SET) after 2 days of embryo culture.

Design: Prospective observational cohort study.

Setting: University-affiliated private infertility center.

Comparing four ovarian reserve markers--associations with ovarian response and live births after assisted reproduction.

Introduction: We compared the ability of four different ovarian reserve tests (ORTs) to predict live births per started in vitro fertilization-intracytoplasmic sperm injection (IVF-ICSI) cycle, and poor and excessive response to controlled ovarian hyperstimulation.

Material And Methods: This was a cohort study in a private infertility center in collaboration with Uppsala University, comprising 1230 IVF-ICSI cycles in 892 consecutive women between April 2008 and June 2011. Anti-Müllerian hormone (AMH) levels, antral follicle counts (AFC), combinations of basal levels of follicle-stimulating hormone and luteinizing hormone, and menstrual cycle lengths were analyzed for correlation and treatment outcome prediction in age-adjusted statistical models.

Using the ovarian sensitivity index to define poor, normal, and high response after controlled ovarian hyperstimulation in the long gonadotropin-releasing hormone-agonist protocol: suggestions for a new principle to solve an old problem.

Objective: To explore the utility of using the ratio between oocyte yield and total dose of FSH, i.e., the ovarian sensitivity index (OSI), to define ovarian response patterns.

Antimüllerian hormone levels are strongly associated with live-birth rates after assisted reproduction.

Context: Previous studies have suggested that antimüllerian hormone (AMH) levels are positively associated with in vitro fertilization (IVF) outcome through their relationship with oocyte yield and not by reflecting oocyte or embryo quality.

Objective: The aim was to investigate whether AMH levels are associated with pregnancy and live-birth rates and whether the results may also reflect qualitative aspects of oocytes and embryos.

Design: The study was a prospective cohort study between April 2008 and June 2011.

Long-term reproductive and metabolic consequences of PCOS.

Polycystic ovary syndrome (PCOS) is associated with reproductive and metabolic consequences. The review of findings indicate that the long-term reproductive outcomes of women with PCOS are surprisingly similar compared to women with normal ovaries, and that they have an ovarian reserve possibly superior to women with normal ovaries. The typical features of PCOS, specifically the anovulatory cycles tend to normalize over time, but in spite of a decrease over time, free androgen levels remain elevated compared to age-matched control subjects.

Ovarian morphology in premenstrual dysphoria.

Ovarian cyclicity is a prerequisite for premenstrual dysphoria (PMD), as illustrated by the fact that this condition is effectively eliminated by ovariectomy or by treatment with a GnRH agonist. Despite the possibility of differences in ovarian function between women with and without PMD, no study comparing ovarian morphology in these two groups has ever been published. Fifty-two women were recruited for this study; 26 had premenstrual dysphoria, fulfilling criteria slightly modified from those of the premenstrual dysphoric disorder, and 26 were asymptomatic age-matched controls.

Antral follicle counts are strongly associated with live-birth rates after assisted reproduction, with superior treatment outcome in women with polycystic ovaries.

Objective: To evaluate the association of antral follicle count (AFC) with in vitro fertilization/intracytoplasmic sperm injection (IVF-ICSI) outcome in a large unselected cohort of patients covering the entire range of AFC.

Design: Prospective observational study.

Setting: University-affiliated private infertility center.