A retrospective cohort study of geographic differences in the semen of 1,012 sperm donors in China.

Background: Male reproductive health has become a serious public health concern, and semen quality is essential to male reproduction. We aimed to investigate geographical differences in the semen quality of sperm donors from northern and southern China by enrolling donors across the country.

Methods: A total of 1,012 sperm donors were enrolled in this study between 2015 and 2019.

Assessment of growth and metabolism characteristics in offspring of dehydroepiandrosterone-induced polycystic ovary syndrome adults.

Polycystic ovary syndrome (PCOS) is a common reproductive disorder that has many characteristic features including hyperandrogenemia, insulin resistance and obesity, which may have significant implications for pregnancy outcomes and long-term health of women. Daughters born to PCOS mothers constitute a high-risk group for metabolic and reproductive derangements, but no report has described potential growth and metabolic risk factors for such female offspring. Hence, we used a mouse model of dehydroepiandrosterone (DHEA)-induced PCOS to study the mechanisms underlying the pathology of PCOS by investigating the growth, developmental characteristics, metabolic indexes and expression profiles of key genes of offspring born to the models.

Ascorbic acid improves pluripotency of human parthenogenetic embryonic stem cells through modifying imprinted gene expression in the Dlk1-Dio3 region.

Introduction: Human parthenogenetic embryonic stem cells (hpESCs) are generated from artificially activated oocytes, however, the issue of whether hpESCs have equivalent differentiation ability to human fertilized embryonic stem cells remains controversial.

Methods: hpESCs were injected into male severe combined immunodeficiency (SCID) mice and the efficiency of teratoma formation was calculated. Then the gene expression and methylation modification were detected by real time-PCR and bisulfate methods.

Basic fibroblast growth factor promotes the development of human ovarian early follicles during growth in vitro.

Study Question: What is the effect of basic fibroblast growth factor (bFGF) on the growth of individual early human follicles in a three-dimensional (3D) culture system in vitro?

Summary Answer: The addition of 200 ng bFGF/ml improves human early follicle growth, survival and viability during growth in vitro.

What Is Known Already: It has been demonstrated that bFGF enhances primordial follicle development in human ovarian tissue culture. However, the growth and survival of individual early follicles in encapsulated 3D culture have not been reported.

Improvement in the quality of heterotopic allotransplanted mouse ovarian tissues with basic fibroblast growth factor and fibrin hydrogel.

Study Question: Does basic fibroblast growth factor (bFGF) in combination with fibrin hydrogel improve follicle development and revascularization of heterotopically transplanted mouse ovarian tissues?

Summary Answer: Treatment of transplanted ovarian tissues with higher concentrations (75, 100 and 150 μg/ml), but not lower concentrations (25 and 50 μg/ml), of bFGF significantly improved primordial follicle survival and angiogenesis, while apoptosis of follicles and stromal cells was significantly decreased.

What Is Known Already: Use of transplanted ovarian tissues in female fertility preservation is limited by the massive loss of follicles and ischemia-reperfusion injury due to the expected delay in revascularization.

Study Design, Size And Duration: Ovarian tissues from 18-day-old ICR mice were encapsulated in fibrin hydrogel mixed with different concentrations of bFGF, then transplanted under the skin of adult female mice for 1 week.