TY - JOUR
T1 - Dynamic in vitro culture of cryopreserved-thawed human ovarian cortical tissue using a microfluidics platform does not improve early folliculogenesis
AU - del Valle, Julieta S.
AU - Mancini, Vanessa
AU - Laverde Garay, Maitane
AU - Asseler, Joyce D.
AU - Fan, Xueying
AU - Metzemaekers, Jeroen
AU - Louwe, Leoni A.
AU - Pilgram, Gonneke S. K.
AU - Westerlaken, Lucette A. J. van der
AU - van Mello, Norah M.
AU - Chuva de Sousa Lopes, Susana M.
N1 - Funding Information:
This research was funded by the European Research Council (OVOGROWTH ERC-CoG-2016-725722 to JD, VM, XF and SC.
Publisher Copyright:
Copyright © 2022 Del Valle, Mancini, Laverde Garay, Asseler, Fan, Metzemaekers, Louwe, Pilgram, Westerlaken, van Mello and Chuva de Sousa Lopes.
PY - 2022/7/29
Y1 - 2022/7/29
N2 - Current strategies for fertility preservation include the cryopreservation of embryos, mature oocytes or ovarian cortical tissue for autologous transplantation. However, not all patients that could benefit from fertility preservation can use the currently available technology. In this regard, obtaining functional mature oocytes from ovarian cortical tissue in vitro would represent a major breakthrough in fertility preservation as well as in human medically assisted reproduction. In this study, we have used a microfluidics platform to culture cryopreserved-thawed human cortical tissue for a period of 8 days and evaluated the effect of two different flow rates in follicular activation and growth. The results showed that this dynamic system supported follicular development up to the secondary stage within 8 days, albeit with low efficiency. Surprisingly, the stromal cells in the ovarian cortical tissue were highly sensitive to flow and showed high levels of apoptosis when cultured under high flow rate. Moreover, after 8 days in culture, the stromal compartment showed increase levels of collagen deposition, in particular in static culture. Although microfluidics dynamic platforms have great potential to simulate tissue-level physiology, this system still needs optimization to meet the requirements for an efficient in vitro early follicular growth.
AB - Current strategies for fertility preservation include the cryopreservation of embryos, mature oocytes or ovarian cortical tissue for autologous transplantation. However, not all patients that could benefit from fertility preservation can use the currently available technology. In this regard, obtaining functional mature oocytes from ovarian cortical tissue in vitro would represent a major breakthrough in fertility preservation as well as in human medically assisted reproduction. In this study, we have used a microfluidics platform to culture cryopreserved-thawed human cortical tissue for a period of 8 days and evaluated the effect of two different flow rates in follicular activation and growth. The results showed that this dynamic system supported follicular development up to the secondary stage within 8 days, albeit with low efficiency. Surprisingly, the stromal cells in the ovarian cortical tissue were highly sensitive to flow and showed high levels of apoptosis when cultured under high flow rate. Moreover, after 8 days in culture, the stromal compartment showed increase levels of collagen deposition, in particular in static culture. Although microfluidics dynamic platforms have great potential to simulate tissue-level physiology, this system still needs optimization to meet the requirements for an efficient in vitro early follicular growth.
KW - cryopreservation
KW - fertility preservation
KW - follicular growth
KW - folliculogenesis
KW - human
KW - microfluidics
KW - ovarian cortical tissue
KW - secondary follicle
UR - https://www.scopus.com/inward/record.uri?partnerID=HzOxMe3b&scp=85135947887&origin=inward
UR - https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/35966050
U2 - https://doi.org/10.3389/fendo.2022.936765
DO - https://doi.org/10.3389/fendo.2022.936765
M3 - Article
C2 - 35966050
SN - 1664-2392
VL - 13
JO - Frontiers in Endocrinology
JF - Frontiers in Endocrinology
M1 - 936765
ER -