Role of endometrial blood flow assessment with color Doppler energy in predicting pregnancy outcome of IVF-ET cycles

This is a prospective study of 182 women (38 yrs or younger) undergoing IVF-ET. Endometrial thickness, echo pattern and blood flow on transvaginal ultrasonography were recorded eight hours prior to hCG administration. The patients were divided into three groups: A (n = 10) with undetectable endometrial blood flow; B (n = 82) with sub-endometrial blood flow; C (n = 90) with both endometrial and sub-endometrial blood flow. According to IVF-ET outcomes, all patients were re-divided into three groups: 1 non-pregnancy (n = 92); 2 intrauterine pregnancy with live fetus (n = 70); 3 others (n = 20 including biochemical pregnancy, embryonic diapause, ectopic pregnancy and miscarriage). Intrauterine pregnancy with live fetus in Group C (62.2%) was much higher than that in Group A and B (0% and 17.1%, p less than or equal to 0.001). The implantation rate (33.2%) was much higher than that in Group A and B (0% and 19.90%, p less than or equal to 0.001). The pulsatility index, resistance index, and S/D of endometrial spiral arteries were 0.1 +/- 0.2, 0.6 +/- 0.1 and 2.5 +/- 0.4 in Group 2, which were much lower than those in Group 1 and Group 3 (p1-2 less than 0.001, p2-3 less than 0.05). The patients with detectable endometrial blood flow had higher clinical pregnancy rates and implantation rates

MicroRNA array and microarray evaluation of endometrial receptivity in patients with high serum progesterone levels on the day of hCG administration

Background: To determine the effect of higher progesterone (P) level on endometrial receptivity. Methods: This was a prospective analysis conducted in the Reproductive Medical Center of Peking University Third Hospital. All patients received IVF treatment and canceled embryo transfer in the same cycle and were divided into group 1 (normal P; 7 patients) and group 2 (elevated P; 12 patients). Endometrial biopsies were performed 6 days after oocyte retrieval. The global miRNA and mRNA gene expressions in endometrial biopsies were investigated with a V4.0 miRNA probe and 22 K Human Genome Array. Fold ratios were derived to compare gene regulation between the groups. Spp1 and Ang gene expression was selected to verify the array results by RT-PCR and the protein expression of osteopontin and VEGF was determined using an immunohistochemical method. Results: There were 4 miRNA (all down-regulated) and 22 mRNA (13 up-regulated and 9 down-regulated) exhibiting differential expression between the groups on the microRNA and microarray chips. miRNA-451, Spp1, and Ang expression in RT-PCR verified the array results. Osteopontin and VEGF were also shown to have positive expression in the endometrium. Conclusions: Data from microRNA and microarray analysis suggests dissimilar endometrial receptivity in patients with high P levels on the day of hCG, and elevated osteopontin and decreased VEGF had poor pregnancy rates.Endocrinology & MetabolismReproductive BiologySCI(E)PubMed21ARTICLE29

Weak Magnetic Field Accelerates Chromate Removal by Zero-Valent Iron

Weak magnetic field (WMF) was employed to improve the removal of Cr(VI) by zero-valent iron (ZVI) for the first time. The removal rate of Cr(VI) was elevated by a factor of 1.12-5.89 due to the application of a WMF, and the WMF-induced improvement was more remarkable at higher Cr(VI) concentration and higher pH. Fe2+ was not detected until Cr(VI) was exhausted, and there was a positive correlation between the WMF-induced promotion factor of Cr(VI) removal rate and that of Fe2+ release rate in the absence of Cr(VI) at pH 4.0-5.5. These phenomena imply that ZVI corrosion with Fe2+ release was the limiting step in the process of Cr(VI) removal. The superimposed WMF had negligible influence on the apparent activation energy of Cr(VI) removal by ZVI, indicating that WMF accelerated Cr(VI) removal by ZVI but did not change the mechanism. The passive layer formed with WMF was much more porous than without WMF, thereby facilitating mass transport. Therefore, WMF could accelerate ZVI corrosion and alleviate the detrimental effects of the passive layer, resulting in more rapid removal of Cr(VI) by ZVI. Exploiting the magnetic memory of ZVI, a two-stage process consisting of a small reactor with WMF for ZVI magnetization and a large reactor for removing contaminants by magnetized ZVI can be employed as a new method of ZVI-mediated remediation

Live birth after in vitro maturation versus standard in vitro fertilisation for women with polycystic ovary syndrome : protocol for a non-inferiority randomised clinical trial

Funding This study was supported by the National Key Research and Development Program of China (2016YFC1000201; 2018YFC1002104) and the National Science Foundation of China (81730038). The study funders had no rule in the study design, implementation, analysis, manuscript, preparation, or decision to submit this article for publication.Peer reviewedPublisher PD

Acupuncture for Visceral Pain: Neural Substrates and Potential Mechanisms

Visceral pain is the most common form of pain caused by varied diseases and a major reason for patients to seek medical consultation. Despite much advances, the pathophysiological mechanism is still poorly understood comparing with its somatic counterpart and, as a result, the therapeutic efficacy is usually unsatisfactory. Acupuncture has long been used for the management of numerous disorders in particular pain and visceral pain, characterized by the high therapeutic benefits and low adverse effects. Previous findings suggest that acupuncture depresses pain via activation of a number of neurotransmitters or modulators including opioid peptides, serotonin, norepinephrine, and adenosine centrally and peripherally. It endows us, by advancing the understanding of the role of ion channels and gut microbiota in pain process, with novel perspectives to probe the mechanisms underlying acupuncture analgesia. In this review, after describing the visceral innervation and the relevant afferent pathways, in particular the ion channels in visceral nociception, we propose three principal mechanisms responsible for acupuncture induced benefits on visceral pain. Finally, potential topics are highlighted regarding the future studies in this field