Research question

Does double stimulation (DuoStim) affect cumulus cell gene expression in luteal-phase-derived oocytes?

Design

This prospective observational study included 39 patients with reduced ovarian reserve. Fifteen patients (group 1) underwent IVF with a gonadotrophin-releasing hormone antagonist in the follicular phase and 24 patients (group 2) underwent DuoStim. A total of 149 cumulus cell samples were divided into two groups according to the phase of the cycle: group 1 included 55 follicular-phase-derived oocytes and group 2 included 94 luteal-phase-derived oocytes. The expression levels of the following genes were assessed using quantitative polymerase chain reaction: HAS2, VCAN, ALCAM, PTGS2, GREM1, ITPKA, TRPM7, SDC4, CALM2, SPSB2, TP53I3, PGR and PFKP.

Results

The expression of 10 out of 13 genes in cumulus cells was similar between DuoStim luteal-phase-derived oocytes and follicular-phase-derived oocytes. A significant increase in the mRNA levels of VCAN (15.542 ± 6.8 versus 20.353 ± 10.58; P = 0.001), SDC4 (1.016 ± 0.65 versus 1.318 ± 0.97; P = 0.013), and TP53I3 (0.185 ± 0.09 versus 0.270 ± 0.11; P = 1.19E-05) was observed in group 2. The number of oocytes collected (5.57 ± 2.3 versus 5.7 ± 2.7; P > 0.05) and the number of blastocysts were comparable between the groups (2.1 ± 2.1 versus 2.7 ± 2.2; P > 0.05).

Conclusions

The DuoStim approach leads to changes in the follicular environment. It affects the expression levels of VCAN, SDC4, and TP53I3 in the cumulus cells of luteal-phase-derived oocytes. These results, however, did not correlate with oocyte maturation, embryo quality and pregnancy rate.

中文翻译：

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在一个月经周期中双重刺激后黄体期衍生卵母细胞中卵丘细胞基因的表达。

研究问题

双刺激 (DuoStim) 会影响黄体期衍生卵母细胞中卵丘细胞基因的表达吗？

设计

这项前瞻性观察研究包括 39 名卵巢储备减少的患者。15 名患者（第 1 组）在卵泡期接受了使用促性腺激素释放激素拮抗剂的 IVF，24 名患者（第 2 组）接受了 DuoStim。总共 149 个卵丘细胞样本根据周期阶段分为两组：第 1 组包括 55 个卵泡期衍生的卵母细胞，第 2 组包括 94 个黄体期衍生的卵母细胞。使用定量聚合酶链反应评估以下基因的表达水平：HAS2、VCAN、ALCAM、PTGS2、GREM1、ITPKA、TRPM7、SDC4、CALM2、SPSB2、TP53I3、PGR和PFKP。

结果

DuoStim 黄体期衍生的卵母细胞和卵泡期衍生的卵母细胞在卵丘细胞中的 13 个基因中有 10 个的表达相似。在mRNA水平甲显著增加VCAN（15.542±6.8对比20.353±10.58; P  = 0.001），SDC4（1.016±0.65对1.318±0.97; P  = 0.013），和TP53I3（0.185±0.09对0.270±0.11; P  = 1.19E-05) 在第 2 组中观察到。 收集的卵母细胞数量（5.57 ± 2.3 对 5.7 ± 2.7；P > 0.05）和囊胚数量在组间具有可比性（2.1 ± 2.1 对 2.7 ± 2.2；P > 0.05）。

结论

DuoStim 方法导致毛囊环境的变化。它影响黄体期衍生卵母细胞卵丘细胞中VCAN、SDC4和TP53I3的表达水平。然而，这些结果与卵母细胞成熟、胚胎质量和妊娠率无关。