The effect of follicular fluid hormones on oocyte recovery after ovarian stimulation: FSH level predicts oocyte recovery.

BackgroundOvarian stimulation for assisted reproductive technology (ART) overcomes the physiologic process to develop a single dominant follicle. However, following stimulation, egg recovery rates are not 100%. The objective of this study is to determine if the follicular fluid hormonal environment is associated with oocyte recovery.MethodsThis is a prospective study involving patients undergoing ART by standard ovarian stimulation protocols at an urban academic medical center. A total of 143 follicular fluid aspirates were collected from 80 patients. Concentrations of FSH, hCG, estradiol, progesterone, testosterone and prolactin were determined. A multivariable regression analysis was used to investigate the relationship between the follicular fluid hormones and oocyte recovery.ResultsIntrafollicular FSH was significantly associated with oocyte recovery after adjustment for hCG (Adjusted odds ratio (AOR) = 1.21, 95%CI 1.03-1.42). The hCG concentration alone, in the range tested, did not impact the odds of oocyte recovery (AOR = 0.99, 95%CI 0.93-1.07). Estradiol was significantly associated with oocyte recovery (AOR = 0.98, 95% CI 0.96-0.99). After adjustment for progesterone, the strength of association between FSH and oocyte recovery increased (AOR = 1.84, 95%CI 1.45-2.34).ConclusionThe relationship between FSH and oocyte recovery is significant and appears to work through mechanisms independent of the sex hormones. FSH may be important for the physiologic event of separation of the cumulus-oocyte complex from the follicle wall, thereby influencing oocyte recovery. Current methods for inducing the final stages of oocyte maturation, with hCG administration alone, may not be optimal. Modifications of treatment protocols utilizing additional FSH may enhance oocyte recovery

Protein carbonylation and aggregation precede neuronal apoptosis induced by partial glutathione depletion

While the build-up of oxidized proteins within cells is believed to be toxic, there is currently no evidence linking protein carbonylation and cell death. In the present study, we show that incubation of nPC12 (neuron-like PC12) cells with 50 μM DEM (diethyl maleate) leads to a partial and transient depletion of glutathione (GSH). Concomitant with GSH disappearance there is increased accumulation of PCOs (protein carbonyls) and cell death (both by necrosis and apoptosis). Immunocytochemical studies also revealed a temporal/spatial relationship between carbonylation and cellular apoptosis. In addition, the extent of all three, PCO accumulation, protein aggregation and cell death, augments if oxidized proteins are not removed by proteasomal degradation. Furthermore, the effectiveness of the carbonyl scavengers hydralazine, histidine hydrazide and methoxylamine at preventing cell death identifies PCOs as the toxic species. Experiments using well-characterized apoptosis inhibitors place protein carbonylation downstream of the mitochondrial transition pore opening and upstream of caspase activation. While the study focused mostly on nPC12 cells, experiments in primary neuronal cultures yielded the same results. The findings are also not restricted to DEM-induced cell death, since a similar relationship between carbonylation and apoptosis was found in staurosporine- and buthionine sulfoximine-treated nPC12 cells. In sum, the above results show for the first time a causal relationship between carbonylation, protein aggregation and apoptosis of neurons undergoing oxidative damage. To the best of our knowledge, this is the first study to place direct (oxidative) protein carbonylation within the apoptotic pathway

A Prospective Study to Establish a New-Onset Diabetes Cohort: From the Consortium for the Study of Chronic Pancreatitis, Diabetes, and Pancreatic Cancer

The National Cancer Institute and the National Institute for Diabetes and Digestive and Kidney Diseases initiated the Consortium for the Study of Chronic Pancreatitis, Diabetes, and Pancreatic Cancer (CPDPC) in 2015 (the CPDPC's origin, structure, governance, and research objectives are described in another article in this journal). One of the key objectives of CPDPC is to assemble a cohort of 10,000 subjects 50 years or older with new-onset diabetes, called the NOD cohort. Using a define, enrich, and find early detection approach, the aims of the NOD study are to (a) estimate the 3-year probability of pancreatic ductal adenocarcinoma (PDAC) in NOD (define), (b) establish a biobank of clinically annotated biospecimens from presymptomatic PDAC and control new-onset type 2 diabetes mellitus subjects, (c) conduct phase 3 validation studies of promising biomarkers for identification of incident PDAC in NOD patients (enrich), and (d) provide a platform for development of a future interventional screening protocol for early detection of PDAC in patients with NOD that incorporates imaging studies and/or clinical algorithms (find). It is expected that 85 to 100 incidences of PDAC will be diagnosed during the study period in this cohort of 10,000 patients

Automatic Compilation from High-Level Biologically-Oriented Programming Language to Genetic Regulatory Networks

Background The field of synthetic biology promises to revolutionize our ability to engineer biological systems, providing important benefits for a variety of applications. Recent advances in DNA synthesis and automated DNA assembly technologies suggest that it is now possible to construct synthetic systems of significant complexity. However, while a variety of novel genetic devices and small engineered gene networks have been successfully demonstrated, the regulatory complexity of synthetic systems that have been reported recently has somewhat plateaued due to a variety of factors, including the complexity of biology itself and the lag in our ability to design and optimize sophisticated biological circuitry. Methodology/Principal Findings To address the gap between DNA synthesis and circuit design capabilities, we present a platform that enables synthetic biologists to express desired behavior using a convenient high-level biologically-oriented programming language, Proto. The high level specification is compiled, using a regulatory motif based mechanism, to a gene network, optimized, and then converted to a computational simulation for numerical verification. Through several example programs we illustrate the automated process of biological system design with our platform, and show that our compiler optimizations can yield significant reductions in the number of genes () and latency of the optimized engineered gene networks. Conclusions/Significance Our platform provides a convenient and accessible tool for the automated design of sophisticated synthetic biological systems, bridging an important gap between DNA synthesis and circuit design capabilities. Our platform is user-friendly and features biologically relevant compiler optimizations, providing an important foundation for the development of sophisticated biological systems.National Institutes of Health (U.S.) (Grant # 7R01GM74712-5)United States. Defense Advanced Research Projects Agency (contract HR0011-10-C-0168)National Science Foundation (U.S.) (NSF CAREER award 0968682)BBN Technologie

Spatial mapping of flow-induced molecular alignment in a noncrystalline biopolymer fluid using double quantum filtered (DQF) 23Na MRI

Flow-induced molecular alignment was observed experimentally in a non-liquid- crystalline bioplymeric fluid during developed tubular flow. The fluid was comprised of rigid rods of the polysaccharide xanthan and exhibited shear-thinning behavior. Without a requirement for optical transparency or the need for an added tracer, 23Na magic angle (MA) double quantum filtered (DQF) magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) enabled the mapping of the anisotropic molecular arrangement under flow conditions. A regional net molecular alignment was found in areas of high shear values in the vicinity of the tube wall. Furthermore, the xanthan molecules resumed random orientations after the cessation of flow. The observed flow-induced molecular alignment was correlated with the rheological properties of the fluid. The work demonstrates the ability of 23Na MA DQF magnetic resonance to provide a valuable molecular-mechanical link

Search for composite and exotic fermions at LEP 2

A search for unstable heavy fermions with the DELPHI detector at LEP is reported. Sequential and non-canonical leptons, as well as excited leptons and quarks, are considered. The data analysed correspond to an integrated luminosity of about 48 pb^{-1} at an e^+e^- centre-of-mass energy of 183 GeV and about 20 pb^{-1} equally shared between the centre-of-mass energies of 172 GeV and 161 GeV. The search for pair-produced new leptons establishes 95% confidence level mass limits in the region between 70 GeV/c^2 and 90 GeV/c^2, depending on the channel. The search for singly produced excited leptons and quarks establishes upper limits on the ratio of the coupling of the excited fermio

Search for charginos in e+e- interactions at sqrt(s) = 189 GeV

An update of the searches for charginos and gravitinos is presented, based on a data sample corresponding to the 158 pb^{-1} recorded by the DELPHI detector in 1998, at a centre-of-mass energy of 189 GeV. No evidence for a signal was found. The lower mass limits are 4-5 GeV/c^2 higher than those obtained at a centre-of-mass energy of 183 GeV. The (\mu,M_2) MSSM domain excluded by combining the chargino searches with neutralino searches at the Z resonance implies a limit on the mass of the lightest neutralino which, for a heavy sneutrino, is constrained to be above 31.0 GeV/c^2 for tan(beta) \geq 1.Comment: 22 pages, 8 figure

Search for lightest neutralino and stau pair production in light gravitino scenarios with stau NLSP

Promptly decaying lightest neutralinos and long-lived staus are searched for in the context of light gravitino scenarios. It is assumed that the stau is the next to lightest supersymmetric particle (NLSP) and that the lightest neutralino is the next to NLSP (NNLSP). Data collected with the Delphi detector at centre-of-mass energies from 161 to 183 \GeV are analysed. No evidence of the production of these particles is found. Hence, lower mass limits for both kinds of particles are set at 95% C.L.. The mass of gaugino-like neutralinos is found to be greater than 71.5 GeV/c^2. In the search for long-lived stau, masses less than 70.0 to 77.5 \GeVcc are excluded for gravitino masses from 10 to 150 \eVcc . Combining this search with the searches for stable heavy leptons and Minimal Supersymmetric Standard Model staus a lower limit of 68.5 \GeVcc may be set for the stau mas