Clinical outcomes of two different endometrial preparation methods for cryopreserved-thawed embryo transfer in patients with a normal menstrual cycle

Aim:  To compare the clinical outcomes of cryopreserved-thawed embryo transfer among patients with a normal menstrual cycle who had natural or hormone-replacement cycles.
Methods:  From January 2004 to June 2006, cryopreserved embryos following conventional in vitro fertilization (IVF) or intracytoplasmic sperm injection (ICSI) were thawed and transferred in a total of 720 natural cycles and 136 hormone-replacement cycles.
Results:  Cryopreserved-thawed embryo transfer in patients who had a natural or hormone-replacement cycle resulted in clinical pregnancy in 43.1% and 40.4%, respectively; a rate of miscarriage of 14.5% and 23.6%, respectively; and a rate of ongoing pregnancy and delivery of 36.5% and 30.9%, respectively. None of these differences were statistically significant.
Conclusions:   Patients with a normal menstrual cycle who have natural or hormone-replacement cycles can be expected to have comparable clinical outcomes with cryopreserved-thawed embryo transfer. (Reprod Med Biol 2007; 6 : 53–57)     

Intra-articular injection of interleukin-4 decreases nitric oxide production by chondrocytes and ameliorates subsequent destruction of cartilage in instability-induced osteoarthritis in rat knee joints

OBJECTIVE: To investigate the in vitro and in vivo effects of interleukin (IL)-4 on mechanical stress-induced nitric oxide (NO) expression by chondrocytes, and destruction of cartilage and NO production in an instability-induced osteoarthritis (OA) model in rat knee joints, respectively. MATERIALS AND METHODS: Cyclic tensile stress (CTS; 0.5Hz and 7% elongation) was applied to cultured normal rat chondrocytes with or without pre-incubation with recombinant rat IL-4 (rrIL-4). Inducible NO synthase (iNOS) mRNA expression and NO production were examined with real-time polymerase chain reaction and the Griess reaction, respectively. OA was induced in rat knee joints by transection of the anterior cruciate and medial collateral ligaments and resection of the medial meniscus. rrIL-4 (10, 50, and 100 ng/joint/day) was injected intra-articularly, and knee joint samples were collected 2, 4, and 6 weeks after surgery. Cartilage destruction was evaluated by the modified Mankin score and Osteoarthritis Research Society International scoring system on paraffin-embedded sections stained with safranin O. Cleavage of aggrecan and NO production were examined by immunohistochemistry for aggrecan neoepitope (NITEGE) and of nitrotyrosine (NT), respectively. RESULTS: rrIL-4 down-regulated CTS-induced iNOS mRNA expression and NO production by chondrocytes. The intra-articular injection of rrIL-4 gave rise to a limited, but significant amelioration of cartilage destruction, prevention of loss of aggrecan, and decrease in the number of NT-positive chondrocytes, an effect that was not dose-dependent. CONCLUSION: The present study suggests that IL-4 may exert chondroprotective properties against mechanical stress-induced cartilage destruction, at least in part, by inhibiting NO production by chondrocytes.     

Therapeutic effects of a combination of intermediate-dose cytosine arabinoside, adriamycin and vincristine in relapsed acute leukemia

Eleven cases of acute leukemia, 8 relapsed and 3 refractory to a conventional induction chemotherapy, were treated with a combination of intermediate-dose cytosine arabinoside (ara-C), adriamycin (ADM) and vincristine (VCR). They consisted of 9 ANLL and 2 ALL. The therapeutic regimen consisted of 1-hour infusion of ara-C of a dose of 500 mg/m2 every 12 hours for 6 days from days 3 to 8, ADM, 40 mg/m2, on day 1 and VCR, 1.4 mg/m2, on day 2. Among 11 cases in which an evaluation was possible, 7 obtained complete remission (CR). The CR rate was 77.8% in the 9 cases of ANLL. The toxicity of this regimen included the following: conjunctivitis in 4 of 11 cases (36%), nausea and vomiting in 9 of 11 cases (91%) and hair loss in all cases, although no toxicities of the central nervous system of liver were observed. The mean level of serum concentration of ara-C was above 10 microM at 15, 30 and 60 minutes after the initiation of infusion. The therapeutic effect of this regimen consisting of intermediate-dose ara-C is expected to be useful not only in induction of refractory and relapsed acute leukemia, but also in the postremission therapy of CR cases.