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Objective: To determine the influence of delayed compaction and fragmentation on the developmental capacity of morulas., Design: Prospective study., Setting: University IVF center., Patient(s): Intracytoplasmic sperm injection (ICSI) cycles with compact embryos on day 4 or day 5., Intervention(s): The embryos were divided into day 4 (n = 329) and day 5 (n = 256) morulas and graded I, II, or III, according to the percentage of fragmentation (<5%, 5%-20%, or >20%). The embryos were measured using Cronus3 software., Main Outcome Measurement(s): Blastocyst development rate, blastocoel expansion rate, and optimal blastocyst rate. In an optimal blastocyst: surface area, trophectoderm cell number, inner cell mass (ICM) surface area, ICM volume and ICM shape., Result(s): Day 4 morulas in classes I-III developed into optimal blastocysts in 57.4%, 50%, and 35.6% of the total, respectively, and day 5 morulas in classes I-III in 43.3%, 29.1%, and 13.6% of the total, respectively. A negative association was identified between the amount of morula fragmentation, the blastocyst ICM size, and the number of trophectoderm cells. A delay of 1 day in compaction was associated with a reduced ICM volume., Conclusion(s): The measurement of compaction timing and cytoplasmic loss in morulas assists in predicting their ability to develop into optimal blastocysts., (Copyright © 2011 American Society for Reproductive Medicine. Published by Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.)

Macrophages are an important cellular component of the innate immune system and are normally rapidly recruited and/or activated at the site of virus infection. They can participate in the antiviral response by killing infected cells, by producing antiviral cytokines such as nitric oxide and by producing chemokines and immunoregulatory cytokines that enable the adaptive immune response to recognize infected cells and perform antiviral effector functions. Probiotics, as a part of the normal gut intestinal flora, are important in supporting a functional yet balanced immune system. Improving our understanding of their role in the activation of macrophages and their stimulation of proinflammatory cytokine production in early viral infection was the main goal of this study. Our in vitro model study showed that probiotic bacteria, either from the species Lactobacillus or Bifidobacteria have the ability to decrease viral infection by establishing the antiviral state in macrophages, by production of NO and inflammatory cytokines such as interleukin 6 and interferon-gamma. These effects correlated with the mitochondrial activity of infected macrophages, therefore, the measurements of mitochondrial dehydrogenases activity could be implied as the first indicator of potential inhibitory effects of the probiotics on virus replication. The interactions between probiotic bacteria, macrophages and vesicular stomatitis virus (VSV), markedly depended on the bacterial strain studied.