BackgroundReproductive function following chemotherapy is of increasing importance given that survival rates are improving. We assessed whether a gonadotropin-releasing hormone antagonist (GnRHant; cetrorelix) could promote ovarian protection against damage due to chemotherapy.MethodsForty-two female Wistar rats were used in this study. Animals were divided into four groups: group I (n = 9) received placebo twice; group II (n = 12) received placebo + cyclophosphamide (CPA); group III (n = 12) received GnRHant + CPA; and group IV (n = 9) received GnRHant + placebo. After medication, the estrous cycle was studied through vaginal smears. Rats were mated, pregnancy was documented and the number of live pups evaluated. Afterwards, rat ovaries were removed and prepared for histological studies. The ovarian cross-sectional area was measured and follicles were counted.ResultsCyclic changes in vaginal smears were observed in all but one animal after treatment, but group II had a significantly lower rate of animals with proestrus or estrus (p < 0.01). The offspring was markedly reduced by CPA treatment (group II, 3.00 +/- 1.33 pups vs. group I, 11.44 +/- 0.78 pups, p < 0.01) and this effect was partly reversed by pre-treatment with GnRHant (group III, 7.00 +/- 1.31 pups). The ovarian cross-sectional area was not significantly different between groups, neither was the number of individual follicle types. However, rats in Group IV had a higher total number of ovarian follicles than those in the control group (17.1 +/- 1.22 vs. 10.9 +/- 0.70, p < 0.05).ConclusionThe use of a GnRHant before CPA chemotherapy provided protection of fertility.

The present study aimed to correlate morphometric parameters of the oocytes with the occurrence of fertilization following intracytoplasmic sperm injection (ICSI). In a prospective, controlled cohort design, women (n = 32) who were candidates for ICSI had oocytes (n = 258) collected and submitted to morphometric evaluation using the Cronus3 software program. The morphometric parameters obtained were oocyte diameter, perivitelline space width, zona pellucida thickness, and first polar body diameter. The median oocyte diameter was similar in cases in which fertilization occurred compared with those in which fertilization failed (75.2 and 75.9 μm, respectively; P = .218). The 2 groups also had similar measurements of perivitelline space, zona pellucida, and first polar body. However, the best quality zygotes identified by a morphological score resulted from oocytes with larger diameter (75.6 vs 74.0 μm; P < .01) and narrow perivitelline space (5.3 vs 7.1 μm; P < .01). Embryo development, as assessed by cleavage at second day of culture, was not significantly associated with oocyte morphometric parameters. These findings suggest that morphometric parameters of the oocytes do not correlate with the occurrence of fertilization following ICSI but may assist in selecting oocytes more likely to originate high-quality zygotes.

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Severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2) and coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) emerged in China in December 2019. Healthcare workers (HCWs) are one of the high-risk groups of infection and knowledge of the seroprevalence of SARS-CoV-2 antibodies among this class is very important, not only to understand the spread of COVID-19 among health institutions but also to assess the success of public health interventions. The objective of this prospective study was to determine the seroprevalence of COVID-19 immunoglobulin G (IgG) antibodies after vaccine administration and assess the symptomatology associated with the number of IgG antibodies. A total of 75 HCWs from an intensive care unit were studied three and six months after the second administration of the COVID-19 vaccine. They were divided into three groups: IgG antibodies between 4,160 and 6,350 (group one), greater than 6,350 (group two), and less than 4,160 (group three). After the first administration of the vaccine, 80% had symptoms in both groups one and two, whereas only 13.8% had symptoms in group three. After the second dose of the vaccine, all elements of group one and 80% of group two developed symptoms, but only 40% of group three manifested symptoms. With the exception of one, all professionals showed a decrease in the number of IgG antibodies from three to six months. Our findings show that professionals with a higher number of IgG antibodies had more symptoms and that these rapidly declined over the three-to-six-month period.