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STUDY QUESTION Does the immune response to coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) infection or the BNT162b2 mRNA vaccine involve the ovarian follicle, and does it affect its function? SUMMARY ANSWER We were able to demonstrate anti-severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS–CoV-2) IgG in follicular fluid (FF) from both infected and vaccinated IVF patients, with no evidence for compromised follicular function. WHAT IS KNOWN ALREADY No research data are available yet. STUDY DESIGN, SIZE, DURATION This is a cohort study, composed of 32 consecutive IVF patients, either infected with COVID-19, vaccinated or non-exposed, conducted between 1 February and 10 March 2021 in a single university hospital-based IVF clinic. PARTICIPANTS/MATERIALS, SETTING, METHODS A consecutive sample of female consenting patients undergoing oocyte retrieval was recruited and assigned to one of the three study groups: recovering from confirmed COVID-19 (n = 9); vaccinated (n = 9); and uninfected, non-vaccinated controls (n = 14). Serum and FF samples were taken and analyzed for anti-COVID IgG as well as estrogen, progesterone and heparan sulfate proteoglycan 2 concentration, as well as the number and maturity of aspirated oocytes and day of trigger estrogen and progesterone measurements. Main outcome measures were follicular function, including steroidogenesis, follicular response to the LH/hCG trigger, and oocyte quality biomarkers. MAIN RESULTS AND THE ROLE OF CHANCE Both COVID-19 and the vaccine elicited anti-COVID IgG antibodies that were detected in the FF at levels proportional to the IgG serum concentration. No differences between the three groups were detected in any of the surrogate parameters for ovarian follicle quality. LIMITATIONS, REASONS FOR CAUTION This is a small study, comprising a mixed fertile and infertile population, and its conclusions should be supported and validated by larger studies. WIDER IMPLICATIONS OF THE FINDINGS This is the first study to examine the impact of SARS–Cov-2 infection and COVID-19 vaccination on ovarian function and these early findings suggest no measurable detrimental effect on function of the ovarian follicle. STUDY FUNDING/COMPETING INTEREST(S) The study was funded out of an internal budget. There are no conflicts of interest for any of the authors. TRIAL REGISTRATION NUMBER CinicalTrials.gov registry number NCT04822012.

All ART pregnancies are associated with an increased risk of multiple pregnancy, cesarean delivery, and congenital abnormality. Compared with IVF and ICSI, IVM is not associated with any additional risk.

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Only internal funding was used. There is no conflict of interest in relation to the study.

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This study compared the embryological characteristics and clinical outcome of in-vitro maturation (IVM) treatment cycles with and without in-vivo matured oocytes collected following human chorionic gonadotrophin (HCG) priming. The patients were administered 10,000 IU of HCG subcutaneously when endometrial thickness reached > or =6 mm and oocyte collection was performed 35-36 h after HCG administration. The clinical outcome and embryological aspects were analysed between IVM cycles with (group 1) and without (group 2) in-vivo matured oocytes. In group 1, three (range 1-12) in-vivo matured oocytes per patient were retrieved on average. The number of good quality embryos derived from in-vivo matured oocytes in group 1 was significantly higher than those derived from in-vitro matured oocytes in group 1 and group 2 (P < 0.05). However, there was no difference between the number of good quality embryos produced from in-vitro matured oocytes in the two groups. There were 12 clinical pregnancies (40.0%) in group 1, and seven pregnancies (23.3%) in group 2. These results suggest that IVM cycles with in-vivo matured oocytes resulted in a good clinical pregnancy rate, which could be explained by the superior quality of embryos derived from the in-vivo matured oocytes.