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Bisphenol A (BPA), one of the widely known endocrine-disrupting chemicals, can be effectively degraded by advanced oxidation processes in water because of the powerful reactive oxygen species. In this study, Fenton, UV/Fenton, and metal ion/peroxymonosulfate (PMS) processes were compared to investigate BPA degradation efficiency and pathways initiated by hydroxyl radicals and sulfate radicals. In contrast to the Fenton system, which only degraded 60% of BPA within 15 min, the UV/Fenton system could degrade greater than 80% of BPA, because more hydroxyl radicals (•OH) were generated under the reduction of Fe

Background Antibiotics are common components of embryo culture media and minimize the risk of microbial contamination and infection during assisted reproductive technology procedures (ART). This study aims to investigate of the effects of two aminoglycoside antibiotics (gentamicin, streptomycin) and penicillin on developmental viability during the embryo culture and the global profiles of gene expression (DE) by RNA-seq of individual mouse blastocysts. Results Zygotes were cultured in an optimized defined medium formulation (KSOM) to which a dose range of each antibiotic was added. A dose-dependent retardation of the rate of zygote development to morphologically normal blastocyst was observed and this was accompanied by a reduction in the number of cells present within the resulting blastocysts. These blastocysts exhibited the lower ability in further 96 hours outgrowth in vitro. The lowest dose of each antibiotic tested (similar to the concentrations used in clinical grade media) caused significant differential expression of approximately 1800 genes. In most cases antibiotic treatment caused a reduction in gene expression and gene ontology analysis showed that down regulated genes were enriched for several biological processes related to the maintenance of genomic integrity. All three antibiotics caused the downregulation of Brca2, Blm, Rad51c and Rad54l, genes involved DNA homologous recombination pathways and also several p53-dependent genes. Immunolocalization studies showed that each antibiotic also reduced level of BRCA2 and RAD51C detected within blastocysts. Conclusions The present study shows that the supplementing embryo culture media with antibiotics is associated with wide ranging alterations in gene expression in a manner that could potentially compromise the genomic integrity of the resulting embryos.

Physiological parameter monitoring is essential to medical staff to evaluate, diagnose and treat patients in neonatal intensive care unit (NICU). Monitoring in NICU includes basic vital signal monitoring and functional monitoring. Basic vital signal monitoring (including ECG, respiration, SpO2, blood pressure, temperature) is advanced and focus on study of usability, continuity and anti-interference. Functional monitoring (including respiratory function, circulatory function, cerebral function) still focus on study of monitoring precision and reliability. Meanwhile, video monitoring and artifact intelligence have presented well performance on improving monitoring precision and anti-interference. In this article, the main parameters and relevant measurement technology for monitoring critical neonates were described.

Physiological parameters monitoring is essential to direct medical staff to evaluate, diagnose and treat critical patients quantitatively. ECG, blood pressure, SpO2, respiratory rate and body temperature are the basic vital signs of patients in the ICU. The measuring methods are relatively mature at present, and the trend is to be wireless and more accurate and comfortable. Hemodynamics, oxygen metabolism and microcirculation should be taken seriously during the treatment of acute critical patients. The related monitoring technology has made significant progress in recent years, the trend is to reduce the trauma and improve the accuracy and usability. With the development of machine vision and data fusion technology, the identification of patient behavior and deterioration has become hot topics. This review is focused on current parameters monitoring technologies, aims to provide reference for future related research.

Water is an important component in liquid medical device products for human assisted reproductive technology. Water traits, conductivity, microbial limits, total organic carbon, easy oxides, heavy metal content, bacterial endotoxin and other indicators have an important impact on sperm, egg and embryo development

Polycystic Ovarian Syndrome (PCOS) is a complex endocrine and reproductive disorder. A main hallmark includes increased androgen production. The root of Paeonia lactiflora Pall. (Bai Shao) is used in Chinese herbal medicine for reproductive disorders, however its effects and mechanisms on ovarian theca cells has not yet been fully elucidated.The aim of this study was to evaluate effect of paeoniflorin extract (PFE), the main constituents of Bai Shao, on androgen production in ovarian theca cells.Primary murine theca cells were treated with concentrations of PFE (1-100 µg/mL) in the presence of dexamethasone (10 µM) with media-only treated cells used as the control. After 24 h, culture media was collected for biochemistry assays of testosterone and progesterone. Expression of key steroidogenic enzymes, cholesterol side-chain cleavage (CYP11A1) and 17α-hydroxylase (CYP17A1) was characterized using immunofluorescence staining, immunoblotting and qRT-PCR.Dexamethasone significantly enhanced testosterone secretion (P 0.05 vs. the control cells). PFE reversed over-production of testosterone induced by dexamethasone in a dose-dependent manner. The treatment with PFE also normalized production of progesterone in dexamethasone-treated cells. Expression of CYP11A1 and CYP17A1 in the theca cells were visualised by immunofluorescence staining. All doses of PFE significantly inhibited CYP17A1 expression detected by immunoblotting, but only 100 µg/mL of PFE downregulated CYP11A1 expression and reduced CYP11A1 significantly in dexamethasone-treated theca cells.PFE may reduce over-secretion of testosterone in theca cells through downregulation of CYP17A1 and CYP11A1. These findings provide scientific evidence to treat ovarian hyperandrogenism with the root of Paeonia lactiflora Pall.

Oogenesis is a lengthy, multi-step process occurring in mammals yielding single or multiple oocytes capable of being fertilized upon interaction with male gametes. The overall process is highly complex in nature, starting in the primordial follicles, and its ultimate completion is preceded by the meiotic cycle. There are two major phases in oogenesis: the growth phase, followed by a maturation phase that requires relatively less time. Both phases require energy for the various metabolic processes of the oocytes. The energy requirements and the timing of maturation vary significantly among mammalian species. This review describes the variations in the mammalian oocytes development and their energy requirements. It covers the types of mitochondria, the distribution of their changes, and the metabolic processes occurring during the oogenesis in different mammalian species. Oocyte abnormalities associated with glucose deficiency in mammals are discussed, along with the role of fat and protein as alternative energy substrates. The review concludes with recommendations for future studies on oogenesis in mammalian species in the context of energy requirements.

Various types of medical devices used in assisted reproductive technologies (ART) should be detected for their safety by strict biological assays. Mouse embryo assay(MEA)has been recognized as one of the most important and standardized methods with the threshold more than 80% of blastocyst formation rate (BR) after 96 h culture of fertilized eggs. The disadvantage using BR for embryonic quality control has been concerned as it is ubiquitously dependent of embryonic morphology and the detailed data including molecular and genetic information is obviously missing and incomplete. This leads to the urgent requirement for more sensitive and efficient assessments for the quality control of ART. This study evaluated the reliability of an immunofluorescent MEA by counting total cell and differential number of the cells in the inner cell mass (ICM) and trophectoderm (TE) in the blastocyst. This method improved the traditional MEA, provided a sensitive and powerful platform to assess embryonic developmental viability and should be suggested as a standard assay to be globally used for the quality control of medical devices and pre-clinical procedures in ART.

© 2015 World Scientific Publishing Company & Institute for Advanced Research in Asian Science and Medicine. Recent studies have demonstrated the effects of green tea polyphenols (GTP) and epigallocatechin-3-gallate (EGCG) on obesity. However, high doses of EGCG have also exhibited cytotoxicity. The aim of this study was to compare total GTP with purified EGCG on cytotoxicity, and to investigate the effects and the molecular mechanism of total GTP and EGCG on adipogenesis. Cytotoxicity was determined by cell viability assay. For the adipogenesis study, 3T3-L1 preadipocytes were incubated with three doses of GTP (1, 10, and 100 μg/ml) and the effect of EGCG (6.8 μg/ml) was compared with 10 μg/ml GTP containing 68% EGCG. Oil Red O staining and triglyceride content assay were carried out 10 days after differentiation and treatment. Adipogenic regulators CCAAT element binding protein α (C/EBPα), peroxisome proliferator-activated receptor gamma (PPARγ) and sterol regulatory element-binding protein-1c (SREBP-1c) were determined by qRT-PCR and immunoblotting. GTP at 1000 μg/ml and EGCG (68 and 680 μg/ml) significantly affected cell viability. Purified EGCG had greater cytotoxicity than corresponding doses of GTP. About 10 μg/ml of GTP showed stronger reduction in triglyceride accumulation than EGCG treatment. Transcriptional factors of C/EBPα, SREBP-1c and PPARγ were markedly decreased in both GTP and EGCG-treated cells and GTP exhibited stronger inhibitory effects on C/EBPα and PPARγ protein expression than EGCG (p < 0.05). In conclusion, total GTP exerted greater inhibitory effects than purified EGCG on adipogenesis through down-regulating the adipogenic factor C/EBPα, SREBP-1c and PPARγ expression. These findings support that a polyphenol mixture is safer and more effective than EGCG alone for preventing obesity and obesity-related chronic diseases.

AIM To investigate protective effects and molecular mechanisms of green tea polyphenols (GTP) on non-alcoholic fatty liver disease (NAFLD) in Zucker fatty (ZF) rats. METHODS Male ZF rats were fed a high-fat diet (HFD) for 2 wk then treated with GTP (200 mg/kg) or saline (5 mL/kg) for 8 wk, with Zucker lean rat as their control. At the end of experiment, serum and liver tissue were collected for measurement of metabolic parameters, alanine aminotransferase (ALT) and aspartate aminotransferase (AST), inflammatory cytokines and hepatic triglyceride and liver histology. Immunoblotting was used to detect phosphorylation of AMP-activated protein kinase (AMPK) acetyl-CoA carboxylase (ACC), and sterol regulatory element-binding protein 1c (SREBP1c). RESULTS Genetically obese ZF rats on a HFD presented with metabolic features of hepatic pathological changes comparable to human with NAFLD. GTP intervention decreased weight gain (10.1%, P = 0.052) and significantly lowered visceral fat (31.0%, P < 0.01). Compared with ZF-controls, GTP treatment significantly reduced fasting serum insulin, glucose and lipids levels. Reduction in serum ALT and AST levels (both P < 0.01) were observed in GTP-treated ZF rats. GTP treatment also attenuated the elevated TNFα and IL-6 in the circulation. The increased hepatic TG accumulation and cytoplasmic lipid droplet were attenuated by GTP treatment, associated with significantly increased expression of AMPK-Thr172 (P < 0.05) and phosphorylated ACC and SREBP1c (both P < 0.05), indicating diminished hepatic lipogenesis and triglycerides out flux from liver in GTP treated rats. CONCLUSION The protective effects of GTP against HFD-induced NAFLD in genetically obese ZF rats are positively correlated to reduction in hepatic lipogenesis through upregulating the AMPK pathway.

© 2017 World Scientific Publishing Company. Polycystic ovary syndrome (PCOS) is a complex heterogeneous disorder characterized by androgen excess and ovulatory dysfunction; it is now known to be closely linked to metabolic syndrome. Recent research suggests that insulin resistance plays an important role in the pathogenesis of PCOS which may lead to the excessive production of androgens by ovarian theca cells. Currently there is no single drug that can treat both the reproductive and metabolic complications of the disorder. Existing pharmaceutical agents such as hormonal therapies have been associated with side effects and are not appropriate for PCOS women with infertility. Additionally, insulin sensitizing agents useful for treating the metabolic abnormalities in PCOS have limited efficacy for treating reproductive aspects of the disorder. Chinese herbal medicines have a long history of treating gynaecological problems and infertility and therefore may be a novel approach to the treatment of PCOS. Current research demonstrates that the compounds isolated from herbs have shown beneficial effects for PCOS and when combined in an herbal formula can target both reproductive and metabolic defects simultaneously. Therefore, further investigation into Chinese herbal medicine in the treatment of PCOS is warranted.

A new non-invasive blood glucose measuring apparatus (NBGMA) made up of MSP430F149 SCM (single chip micyoco) was developed, which can measure blood glucose level (BGL) frequently, conveniently and painlessly. The hardware and software of this apparatus were designed, and detecting algorithms based on conservation of energy method (COEM) were presented. According to the law of conservation of energy that the energy derived by human body equals energy consumed by metabolism, and the relationship between convection, evaporation, radiation and the BGL was established. The sensor module was designed. 20 healthy volunteers were involved in the clinical experiment. The BGL measured by an automatic biochemical analyzer (ABA) was set as the reference. Regression analysis was performed to compare the conservation of energy method with the biochemical method, using the 20 data points with blood glucose concentrations ranging from 680 to 1 100 mg/L. Reproducibility was measured for healthy fasting volunteers. The results show that the means of BGL detected by NBGMA and ANA are very close to each other, and the difference of standard deviation (SD) is 24.7 mg/L. The correlative coefficient is 0.807. The coefficient of variation (CV) is 4% at 921.6 mg/L. The resultant regression is evaluated by the Clarke error grid analysis (EGA) and all data points are included in the clinically acceptable regions (region A: 100%, region B: 0%). Accordingly, it is feasible to measure BGL with COEM.

Introduction Spermatozoa motility is the critical parameter to affect the treatment outcomes during assisted reproductive technologies (ART), but its reproductive capability remains a little informed in condition of severe male factor infertility. This retrospective cohort study aimed to evaluate the effects of reduced sperm motility on the embryological and clinical outcomes in intra-cytoplasmic sperm injection (ICSI) treatment of severe oligozoospermia. Patients and Methods 966 cycles (812 couples) of severe oligozoospermia diagnosed by spermatozoa count ≤ 5 × 106/mL and motile spermatozoa ≤ 2 × 106/mL were divided into four groups in according to the number of motile spermatozoa in one ejaculate on the day of oocyte retrieval (Group B—E). The control (Group A) was 188 cycles of moderate oligozoospermia with spermatozoa count > 5 × 106/mL and motile spermatozoa > 2 × 106/mL. All female partners were younger than 35 years of age. Logistic regression analyzed embryological outcomes (the rates of fertilization, cleavage and good-quality embryo) and clinical outcomes (the rates of pregnancy, implantation, early miscarriage and live birth). Quality of embryo transfer (ET) was divided into three classes as continuous factor to test the effects of embryo quality on clinical outcomes. Results The reduction in the number of motile sperm in four groups of severe oligozoospermia gave rise to comparable inability of the fertilization (p < 0.001) and a decreased rate of good-quality embryo at Day 3 (p < 0.001) by compared to the control. The cleavage rate of the derived zygotes was similar to the control. ET classes significantly affected the clinical outcomes (p < 0.001). Class I ET gave rise to similar rates of clinical outcomes between five groups, but Class II and Class III ET retarded the rates of pregnancy, implantation and live birth and this particularly occurred in Group C, D and E. The rate of early miscarriage was not comparably different between groups. Overall rates in all groups were 41.26% clinical pregnancy, 25.74% implantation and 36.32% live birth, which gave live birth to 252 girls and 252 boys. Conclusions The reduction of motile spermatozoa in severe oligozoospermia decreased the rates of fertilization and good-quality embryo. Obtaining and transfer of good-quality embryos was the good prognostic to achieve prospective clinical outcomes regardless of the severity of oligozoospermia.

The aim of this study was to determine whether inhibition of resistin by a synthetic antiresistin RNA (oligonucleotide) oligo ameliorates metabolic and histological abnormalities in nonalcoholic fatty liver disease (NAFLD) induced by high-fat diet (HFD) in mice. The antiresistin RNA oligo and a scrambled control oligo (25 mg/kg of body weight) were i.p. injected to HFD mice. Serum metabolic parameters and hepatic enzymes were measured after 4-week treatment. The treatment significantly reduced epididymal fat and attenuated the elevated serum resistin, cholesterol, triglycerides, glucose, and insulin with an improved glucose tolerance test. Antiresistin RNA oligo also normalized serum AST and ALT levels with improved pathohistology of NAFLD. Immunoblotting and qRT-PCR revealed that decreased protein and mRNA expression of resistin in fat and liver tissues of the treated mice were associated with reduction of adipose TNF-αand IL-6 expression and secretion into circulation. mRNA and protein expression of hepatic phosphoenolpyruvate carboxykinase (PEPCK) and sterol regulatory element-binding protein-1c (SREBP-1c) were also significantly decreased in the treated mice. Our results suggest that resistin may exacerbate NAFLD in metabolic syndrome through upregulating inflammatory cytokines and hepatic PEPCK and SREBP-1c. Antiresistin RNA oligo ameliorated metabolic abnormalities and histopathology of NAFLD through attenuating proinflammatory cytokines.

Azoospermia, cryptozoospermia and necrospermia can markedly decrease the ability of males to achieve pregnancy in fertile females. However, patients with these severe conditions still have the option to be treated by intracytoplasmic sperm injection (ICSI) to become biological fathers. This study analyzed the fertilization ability and the developmental viabilities of the derived embryos after ICSI treatment of the sperm from these patients compared with in vitro fertilization (IVF) treatment of the proven-fertile donor sperm on sibling oocytes as a control. On the day of oocyte retrieval, the number of sperm suitable for ICSI collected from two ejaculates or testicular sperm extraction was lower than the oocytes, and therefore, excess sibling oocytes were treated by IVF with donor sperm. From 72 couples (73 cycles), 1117 metaphase II oocytes were divided into 512 for ICSI and 605 for IVF. Compared with the control, husbands’ sperm produced a lower fertilization rate in nonobstructive azoospermia (65.4% vs 83.2%; P < 0.001), crytozoospermia (68.8% vs 75.5%; P < 0.05) and necrospermia (65.0% vs 85.2%; P < 0.05). The zygotes derived in nonobstructive azoospermia had a lower cleavage rate (96.4% vs 99.4%; P < 0.05), but the rate of resultant good-quality embryos was not different. Analysis of the rates of cleaved and good-quality embryos in crytozoospermia and necrospermia did not exhibit a significant difference from the control. In conclusion, although the sperm from severe male infertility reduced the fertilization ability, the derived embryos had potential developmental viabilities that might be predictive for the expected clinical outcomes.