Cytoskeletal and inter-cellular junction remodelling in endometrial organoids under oxygen-glucose deprivation: a new potential pathological mechanism for thin endometria.

Study Question: What is the pathological mechanism involved in a thin endometrium, particularly under ischaemic conditions?

Summary Answer: Endometrial dysfunction in patients with thin endometrium primarily results from remodelling in cytoskeletons and cellular junctions of endometrial epithelial cells under ischemic conditions.

What Is Known Already: A healthy endometrium is essential for successful embryo implantation and subsequent pregnancy; ischemic conditions in a thin endometrium compromise fertility outcomes.

Study Design, Size, Duration: We recruited 10 patients with thin endometrium and 15 patients with healthy endometrium.

Association of serum uric acid with women's ovarian reserve: observational study and Mendelian randomization analyses.

Objective: To investigate the association between serum uric acid and women's ovarian reserve.

Design: Retrospective observational study and Mendelian randomization study.

Setting: University-affiliated in vitro fertilization center.

The effect of surface nucleation modulation on the mechanical and biocompatibility of metal-polymer biomaterials.

The deployment of hernia repair patches in laparoscopic procedures is gradually increasing. In this technology, however, understanding the new phases of titanium from the parent phase on polymer substrates is essential to control the microstructural transition and material properties. It remains a challenging area of condensed matter physics to predict the kinetic and thermodynamic properties of metals on polymer substrates from the molecular scale due to the lack of understanding of the properties of the metal-polymer interface.

PPM1K-regulated impaired catabolism of branched-chain amino acids orchestrates polycystic ovary syndrome.

Background: Polycystic ovary syndrome (PCOS) is one of the most common diseases with the coexistence of reproductive malfunction and metabolic disorders. Previous studies have found increased branched chain amino acid (BCAA) levels in women with PCOS. However, it remains unclear whether BCAA metabolism is causally associated with the risk of PCOS.

Circ_0115118 regulates endometrial functions through the miR-138-1-3p/WDFY2 axis in patients with PCOS†.

To investigate the expression profiles of circular RNAs (circRNAs) in the endometria of women with polycystic ovary syndrome (PCOS) and to explore the role of aberrant circ_0115118 expression in endometrial dysfunction in patients with PCOS. CircRNA microarray hybridization and bioinformatic analyses were performed to determine the expression patterns of circRNAs in the endometria of patients with or without PCOS, the expression of target circRNA was evaluated by real-time polymerase chain reaction (PCR). Cell counting kit-8 and Transwell assays were used to detect cellular proliferative, invasive, and migratory capacities.

Elevated serum uric acid level is associated with adverse reproductive outcomes in women with polycystic ovary syndrome undergoing in vitro fertilization or intracytoplasmic sperm injection embryo transfer cycles: a retrospective cohort study.

Background: Serum uric acid levels are elevated in polycystic ovary syndrome, however, the relationship between serum uric acid level and reproductive outcomes in women with polycystic ovary syndrome remains unclear.

Objective: This study aimed to investigate the association between serum uric acid level and the reproductive outcomes in women with polycystic ovary syndrome undergoing in vitro fertilization or intracytoplasmic sperm injection embryo transfer cycles.

Study Design: This was a retrospective cohort study performed at a university-affiliated reproductive medicine center.

Abnormal Endometrial Receptivity and Oxidative Stress in Polycystic Ovary Syndrome.

Polycystic ovary syndrome (PCOS) is a common endocrine and metabolic disorder in women of childbearing age. Individual heterogeneity is evident, and the prevalence rate ranges between 6 and 15% globally. The prevalence rate of PCOS in Chinese women of childbearing age is 5.

An Altered Microbiota in the Lower and Upper Female Reproductive Tract of Women with Recurrent Spontaneous Abortion.

Recurrent spontaneous abortion (RSA) is a complex multifactorial disease. Recently, the microbiota of the female reproductive tract, as an emerging factor in RSA, has gradually attracted the attention of many clinical researchers. Here, we reported that the microbiota of the lower and upper female reproductive tracts from patients with RSA showed no significant differences in alpha diversity compared to that of controls.

Elevated Levels of Follicular Fatty Acids Induce Ovarian Inflammation via ERK1/2 and Inflammasome Activation in PCOS.

Context: Polycystic ovary syndrome (PCOS) is accompanied by chronic inflammation and metabolic disorders. Whether metabolic abnormalities affect inflammation in PCOS or not, the underlying mechanism remains to be clarified.

Objective: We aimed to investigate changes in fatty acids and their effects on inflammatory response in the follicular niche of PCOS patients.

Amino acid signatures in relation to polycystic ovary syndrome and increased risk of different metabolic disturbances.

Research Question: Do women with polycystic ovary syndrome (PCOS) have a distinct plasma amino acid profile and do potential amino acid markers exist for different metabolic risks of PCOS?

Design: Chinese Han women (n = 380; 190 with PCOS and 190 controls matched for age and BMI) were recruited and basal state plasma collected. The concentrations of 50 amino acids were quantitatively determined by high-performance LCMS.

Results: Thirty-one amino acids had abnormal levels in the PCOS group versus the control group.

Mendelian randomization analyses for PCOS: evidence, opportunities, and challenges.

Identifying etiological risk factors is significant for preventing and treating patients with polycystic ovary syndrome (PCOS). Through genetic variation, Mendelian randomization (MR) assesses causal associations between PCOS risk and related exposure factors. This emerging technology has provided evidence of causal associations of anti-Müllerian hormone (AMH) levels, sex hormone-binding globulin (SHBG) levels, menopause age, adiposity, insulin resistance (IR), depression, breast cancer, ovarian cancer, obsessive-compulsive disorder (OCD), and forced vital capacity (FVC) with PCOS, while lacking associations of type 2 diabetes mellitus (T2DM), coronary heart disease (CHD), stroke, anxiety disorder (AD), schizophrenia (SCZ), bipolar disorder (BIP), and offspring birth weight with PCOS.

Potential effects of adropin on systemic metabolic and hormonal abnormalities in polycystic ovary syndrome.

Research Question: The study aimed to explore the effects of adropin on hormone concentrations and glucolipid and amino acid metabolism in patients with polycystic ovary syndrome (PCOS).

Design: A total of 220 PCOS patients and 67 controls were recruited and basal state plasma was collected for adropin measurement. Follicular fluids from 50 PCOS patients and 30 controls were also collected for adropin analysis.

Coordinated Modulation of Energy Metabolism and Inflammation by Branched-Chain Amino Acids and Fatty Acids.

As important metabolic substrates, branched-chain amino acids (BCAAs) and fatty acids (FAs) participate in many significant physiological processes, such as mitochondrial biogenesis, energy metabolism, and inflammation, along with intermediate metabolites generated in their catabolism. The increased levels of BCAAs and fatty acids can lead to mitochondrial dysfunction by altering mitochondrial biogenesis and adenosine triphosphate (ATP) production and interfering with glycolysis, fatty acid oxidation, the tricarboxylic acid cycle (TCA) cycle, and oxidative phosphorylation. BCAAs can directly activate the mammalian target of rapamycin (mTOR) signaling pathway to induce insulin resistance, or function together with fatty acids.

A novel PPARα/γ agonist, propane-2-sulfonic acid octadec-9-enyl-amide, ameliorates insulin resistance and gluconeogenesis in vivo and vitro.

Peroxisome proliferator-activated receptor alpha/gamma (PPARα/γ) agonists have emerged as important pharmacological agents for improving insulin action. Propane-2-sulfonic acid octadec-9-enyl-amide (N15) is a novel PPARα/γ dual agonist synthesized in our laboratory. The present study investigates the efficacy and safety of N15 on insulin resistance regulation in high fat diet (HFD)-and streptozotocin (STZ)-induced diabetic mice and in palmitic acid (PA)-induced HepG2 cells.