Fertilization News and Research

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First-ever genomic analysis of puberty yields insights into critical areas of human health

In the first-ever genome-scale analysis of the puberty process in humans, researchers at Huntsman Cancer Institute at the University of Utah outline distinct and critical changes to stem cells in males during adolescence.

9 Jan 2020

First in vitro system can help study early spine development in humans

More than 20 years ago, the lab of developmental biologist Olivier Pourquié discovered a sort of cellular clock in chicken embryos where each "tick" stimulates the formation of a structure called a somite that ultimately becomes a vertebra.

9 Jan 2020

Study hints a link between disruptions to progesterone signaling and recurrent miscarriage

About twenty percent of confirmed pregnancies end in miscarriage, most often in the first trimester, for reasons ranging from infection to chromosomal abnormality.

6 Jan 2020

Majority of people do not want religious doctrine dictating healthcare choices, study reveals

A small minority of Americans surveyed consider the religious affiliation of the hospitals that treat them, but a majority said they didn't want religious doctrine dictating their healthcare choices, according to a study by researchers at the University of Colorado Anschutz Medical Campus.

2 Jan 2020

Consumers feel empowered and confused by direct-to-consumer fertility tests, study reveals

Direct-to-consumer hormone-based "fertility testing" for women is viewed by consumers as both an alternative, empowering tool for family planning, and a confusing and misleading one, according to the results of a new study from Penn Medicine.

30 Dec 2019

Study reveals rapid effects of diet on sperm quality

Sperm are influenced by diet, and the effects arise rapidly. This is the conclusion of a study by researchers at Linköping University, in which healthy young men were fed a diet rich in sugar.

28 Dec 2019

Chemical reprogramming of granulosa cells to form functional oocytes

By introducing a chemical cocktail to granulosa cells, researchers in China induced the cells to transform into functional oocytes in mice.

26 Dec 2019

Autism risk in children could be predicted by mutations in paternal sperm

Researchers from the University of California, San Diego, have found that mutations present in the sperms of the father could be predictors of autism in the offspring, in a landmark study. These mutations, if quantified could help ascertain the risk say the researchers. The new study appears this week in the latest issue of the journal Nature Medicine.

23 Dec 2019

A new function identified for glycine receptors during embryonic development

Glycine receptors are one of the most widely distributed inhibitory receptors in the central nervous system and have important roles in a variety of physiological processes.

18 Dec 2019

Penn researchers track defective sperm epigenome linked to male infertility

One out of eight couples has trouble conceiving, with nearly a quarter of those cases caused by unexplained male infertility. For the past decade, research has linked that infertility to defective sperm that fail to "evict" proteins called histones from DNA during development.

16 Dec 2019

Important discovery about male infertility could lead to new treatments

Using a new mouse model, Penn Medicine researchers have identified defects in the sperm epigenome that cause male infertility.

16 Dec 2019

Boys born small at higher risk of infertility

A new study published in the journal Human Reproduction on December 13, 2019, shows that baby boys who don’t grow as well as expected in the womb may grow up to be infertile as adults. The study showed a 55% or 85% higher risk of infertility among this group of men compared to those born with appropriate weights.

15 Dec 2019

Why some sperm swim in circles – it’s a protein defect

A new study published in the journal PNAS shows that some sperm cannot swim straight because they lack a protein called VSP. This motility defect seriously impacts the rates of successful fertilization. In addition, VSP is also found to regulate the amount of calcium that enters the flagellum, the whiplike organelle that propels the sperm towards the waiting ovum or egg. This important discovery may help treat infertility more effectively.

3 Dec 2019

Mystery surrounds gene edited babies one year on

A year back Chinese scientist He Jiankui was in the news for all the wrong reasons. He had helped create the world’s first genetically edited human babies. After a year the world is still in dark about the whereabouts and health of the babies he had created and he himself has been not seen since January this year.

27 Nov 2019

U-M's insurance coverage benefit associated with increase in IVF rates

For couples wanting to have a baby, a diagnosis of infertility can be devastating. And while infertility treatments, such as in vitro fertilization (IVF), offer hope for would-be parents, the procedure comes with a high price tag.

13 Nov 2019

Fertilization discovery reveals egg's role, potentially paves way for new contraceptive

An unexpected discovery about fertilization from the University of Virginia School of Medicine reveals new insights on how sperm and egg fuse and could have major implications for couples battling infertility – and may lead to a future male contraceptive.

13 Nov 2019

New light on the essential reproductive role of the clitoris

A new study focuses on the role of the clitoris in females, showing that when it is stimulated, it triggers a wave of changes within the rest of the reproductive tract. The outcome of these changes confers on the clitoris not only recreative but also reproductive importance, according to the studies.

10 Nov 2019