The experience of prenatal diagnosis and termination of pregnancy can be an unwelcome memory and this leads to a demand for an alternative approach. Our data suggest that PGD is acceptable to patients and is a valuable alternative to prenatal diagnosis.

The protocol followed results in high rates of survival and potential for in-vitro maturation, but has a deleterious effect on the organization of the meiotic spindle of human oocytes cryopreserved at both the GV and MII stages.

Human embryonic stem (hES) cells represent a potential source for cell replacement therapy of many degenerative diseases. Most frequently, hES cell lines are derived from surplus embryos from assisted reproduction cycles, independent of their quality or morphology. Here, we show that hES cell lines can be obtained from poor-quality blastocysts with the same efficiency as that obtained from good-or intermediate-quality blastocysts. Furthermore, we show that the self-renewal, pluripotency, and differentiation ability of hES cell lines derived from either source are comparable. Finally, we present a simple and reproducible embryoid body-based protocol for the differentiation of hES cells into functional cardiomyocytes. The five new hES cell lines derived here should widen the spectrum of available resources for investigating the biology of hES cells and advancing toward efficient strategies of regenerative medicine.

Nowadays, high-dose chemotherapy and radiotherapy treatments for cancer are more effective but can severely affect the ovarian follicular store, compromising the fertility of surviving young patients. A promising alternative to prevent fertility loss in these patients is the cryopreservation and transplantation of ovarian tissue. Slices of animal and human ovarian tissue have been shown to survive the cryopreservation process. After transplantation, follicular development and restoration of hormone secretion have been observed in animal and human studies. This review addresses recent developments on ovarian tissue transplantation in animals and humans. We also illustrate the indications and technical difficulties of the procedure and the ethical issues that should be considered.

The CuFix (GyneFix), conceived in 1985, was developed to minimize three major problems frequently associated with discontinuation of IUD use: expulsion, bleeding and pain. Since the initial clinical investigations, over 10,000 woman years of experience and up to 8 years of follow-up in international multicenter, non-comparative and comparative clinical trials, including a large proportion of nulligravid/nulliparous women, have been collected. Based on new clinical information about the GyneFix from a long-term multicenter clinical trial, conducted in young nulligravid/nulliparous and parous women, the importance of this new contraceptive is discussed. The following conclusions were reached: The unique design characteristics of the GyneFix (frameless, flexible and fixed to the fundus of the uterus) have resulted in optimal tolerance and almost complete absence of expulsion. The result is enhanced effectiveness (comparable to OCs and male/female sterilization) and a high rate of continued use. The GyneFix reduces the IUD failure rate to a minimum and is, therefore, a welcome reversible alternative to OCs and female surgical contraception. Framelessness and flexibility explain the absence of side-effects and adverse events caused by dimensional incompatibility between the frame of conventional IUDs and the uterine cavity and may also explain the absence of PID and ectopic pregnancies in any of the clinical studies. The GyneFix is a promising new, highly effective and safe, contraceptive option for parous women and an equally effective and well-accepted method for nulliparous women.