Assessment of the relationship between follicular fluid calcium ion concentration and reproductive outcomes

Background: Quantification of follicular fluid (FF) composition can provide valuable information about the oocyte state which can be helpful in distinguishing high and low quality oocyte. In the absence of appropriate calcium signaling at fertilization, the embryo may fail to implant and/or develop to full term. We herein aimed to investigate whether FF levels of Ca2+ ion concentrations vary between patients who achieved pregnancy and those who did not following a standard ICSI treatment regimen, and hence to determine whether FF Ca2+ levels could predict reproductive outcomes in patients undergoing ICSI.Methods: Patients seeking treatment for solely unexplained infertility were recruited in the period between June and December 2013 and were assigned to the groups according to their reproductive outcomes. Group 1 consisted of patients who conceived and Group 2 consisted of those who did not achieve pregnancy following ICSI. Parametric comparisons were performed using Student’s t-test. Categorical data were evaluated by using χ2 test.Results: Groups 1 and 2 consisted of 34 and 66 patients, respectively. Although FF Ca2+ ion concentrations were higher in those who did not achieve any pregnancy, the difference did not reached to statistical significance level (7.6±0.4 mg/dl and 7.9±0.9 mg/dl respectively, p=0.070).Conclusions: FF Ca2+ ion concentrations did not significantly differ between patients who achieved pregnancy and who did not followed ICSI attempts. Thus FF Ca2+ levels do not appear to be of benefit in predicting reproductive outcomes in unexplained infertility patients undergoing ICSI cycles

Does the number of prior oocyte retrieval practices increase the amount of blood loss in subsequent OPU procedures?

Background: Though OPU is a safe and simple procedure, it may cause damage to pelvic structures and bleeding. It is unclear whether history of a prior OPU poses any risk of increased blood loss in the OPU. We, herein, aimed to evaluate whether mean blood loss and hematologic parameters vary between women with and without the history of an OPU, in an unexplained infertility population.Methods: A prospective case-control study was conducted through the files of patients who underwent IVF/ICSI-ET between June and December 2013. Unexplained infertility patients with a CBC result were assigned to two groups; those undergoing OPU for the first time (Group 1, n=40) and those who were previously subjected to at least 1 procedure (Group 2, n=13). Blood samples were obtained before the ET. Hemoglobin values and changes were compared between the two groups.Results: Delta hemoglobin value did not significantly differ between the groups (p=0.469) and there were no significant difference between the pre- and post-procedure hemoglobin values in the patients with no and at least one OPUs and the total patient population (p=0.792, 0.259 and 0.442, respectively).Conclusions: Our study results reveal that the amount of the blood loss in OPU does not significantly vary between women subjected to the procedure for the first time and for more than 1 time.

Progesterone vaginal capsule versus vaginal gel for luteal support in normoresponder women undergoing long agonist IVF/ICSI cycles

Objectives: The aim of the study was to investigate the effects of two different vaginal progesterone forms, administered for luteal phase support, on pregnancy outcomes in normoresponder women aged < 35, who underwent long agonist IVF/ICSI-ET cycles. Material and methods: A retrospective cohort analysis was designed. Normoresponders with primary infertility, who un­derwent IVF/ICSI-ET cycles employing GnRH analogue and who received progesterone as either capsule or gel form for LPS following a single embryo transfer, were analyzed. The cycles were categorized into two groups: micronized progesterone vaginal capsule 600 mg/day (Group 1, n = 78) and progesterone vaginal gel 180 mg/day (Group 2, n = 99). Positive β-hCG, clinical pregnancy and ongoing pregnancy rates were analyzed. Results: Both, demographic and stimulation characteristics were comparable between the groups. No difference was observed between the capsule and the gel groups regarding positive β-hCG (33.3% and 28.3%, respectively; p = 0.580), clinical pregnancy (26.9% and 22.2%, respectively; p = 0.584), and ongoing pregnancy rates (21.8% and 20.2%, respectively; p = 0.942) after treatment completion. Conclusions: In long agonist IVF/ICSI-ET cycles, positive β-hCG, clinical pregnancy and ongoing pregnancy rates do not significantly differ between normoresponder patients receiving micronized progesterone vaginal capsule and those receiv­ing progesterone vaginal gel for LPS

Does biochemical profile of follicular fluid in women undergoing assisted reproduction vary between the right and left ovaries?

Background: Follicular fluid (FF) provides a substantial micro-milieu for the development of the oocytes. Moreover, the content of FF may also reflect the circulating biochemical environment and the changes in blood serum. Despite the known embriyological and histological similarities between right and left ovaries, differences do exist between their venous drainage, anatomical relations and cyclical physiological changes. The difference between the two ovaries in the response to controlled hyperstimulatons (COH) in IVF regimens was later confirmed by recent studies. The aim of this study was to compare the biochemical differences between the FFs yielded from the right and left ovaries in patients undergoing standart IVF treatment.Methods: A prospective observational study was conducted through the unexplained infertility patients with the age between 23-39 years, body mass index (BMI) ≤28 kg/m2, FSH ≤10 mIU/mL. FFs aspirated from the right and the left ovary of the patients were assayed for estradiol, calcium, phosphorus, uric acid, urea, total protein, AST, ALT, glucose, sodium, potassium and creatinine. A total of 10 patients undergoing IVF treatments were included.Results: The investigated parameters were not significantly different between FFs yielded from the right and left ovaries.Conclusion: According to the results of our study, biochemical profile of the aspirated FFs does not significantly differ between the right and the left ovary and consequently, either right or left ovaries provide similar micro-environments to the developing oocytes.

Urban Landscapes

The issue focuses on philosophies and designs that shape our cities on a broader scale; exploring different approaches between architecture, built environment, and nature; from material to medicinal plants, from plant scale to urban and social sciences. The issue examines the natural and built environment in Istanbul through the relationship between urban planning, urban space, architecture, and landscape architecture. It focuses on designs made in different parts of Istanbul between natural areas and built areas in the city. The urban landscape is an effective and important design process that includes the interaction of architecture, city planning, and landscape architecture disciplines and creates the living environment of people within and between buildings. It has a complementary and important effect in the process of providing and maintaining the physical, physiological, psychological, and social needs of its users. It covers structural design and furniture location selection and design as well as planting. The special issue on Urban Landscape covers this concept; It has a content setup that starts from the upper scale and shrinks towards the building scale.info:eu-repo/semantics/publishedVersio

The Impact of The Global Financial Crisis of 2008 on Turkish Financial and Reel Sector

2008 yılında Amerika Birleşik Devletleri’nde mortgage sisteminde yaşanan sorun ile başlayan 2008 küresel krizinin Türkiye Ekonomisi’ni etkileyip etkilemediği Borsa İstan-bul’da faaliyet gösteren metal eşya, makine ve gereç yapım ile bankacılık sektörü firmala-rının finansal oranları aracılığıyla gerçekleştirilecek analizler ile belirlenmeye çalışılmıştır. Çalışmada 2005–2013 yılları arasında çeyrek dönemler itibariyle bilançolarına ulaşılabilen toplam 33 (otuzüç) işletmenin verisi üzerinden One Way Anova testi yapılarak krizin etkili olup olmadığı araştırılmıştır. Çalışma sonucunda metal eşya, makine ve gereç yapım sektörü için likidite oranlarında, performans oranlarında ve karlılık oranlarında istatistiksel olarak anlamlı bir farklılık olmadığı belirlenmiştir. Fakat faaliyet oranları içerisinde yer alan stok devir hızı ile aktif devir hızı oranlarında istatistiki olarak anlamlı bir farklılığa rastlanma-maktadır. Ayrıca alacak devir hızı oranında kriz döneminde alacaklarını tahsil etme yetene-ğinin azalması sebebiyle dönemler arasında anlamlı farklılıklar görülmektedir. Kriz döne-minde kaldıraç oranlarında da dönemler arası anlamlı farklılıklar görülmektedir. Bankacılık sektörü için ise karlılık oranlarında anlamlı farklılığa rastlanmamaktadır. Fakat kaldıraç oranında ve performans oranlarında istatistiksel açıdan anlamlı farklılığa rastlanmaktadır.The purpose of the study is to determine whether the economy of Turkey was affected by the global crisis that began in the United Stated in 2008 under the name of mortgages. The mentioned effect is trying to be determined through analyzing that metal goods, machinery and equipment production, and the financial ratios of banking sector firms operating in İstanbul Stock Exchange. In this study, one-way Anova test was performed on the data of 33 (thirty-three) enterprises whose balance sheets could be reached by quarterly periods between 2005-2013 and it was investigated whether the crisis was effective. As a result of the study, it has been determined that there is no statistically significant difference in liquidity ratios, performance rates and profitability rates for metal goods, machinery and equipment construction sector. However, there is no statistically significant difference in the rate of turnover and asset turnover from operating rates. In addition, there are significant differences between the periods due to the decrease in the ability to collect receivables during the crisis period. There are also significant differences between the periods in leverage ratios during the crisis period. There is no significant difference in the profitability ratios for the banking sector. However, there is a statistically significant difference in leverage and performance ratios