Cell-free nucleic acids and melatonin levels in human follicular fluid predict embryo quality in patients undergoing in-vitro fertilization treatment - 05/09/19

Doi : 10.1016/j.jogoh.2019.08.007

Haroon Latif Khan ^a, Shahzad Bhatti ^a,^b,^c,⁎ , Yousaf Latif Khan ^a,^d, Sana Abbas ^a, Zaid Munir ^c, Ismail Abdur Rahman Khan Sherwani ^c, Samina Suhail ^a, Zahira Hassan ^e, Hikmet Hakan Aydin ^f
^a Lahore Institute of Fertility and Endocrinology, Hameed Latif Hospital, 14- Abu Bakar Block, New Garden Town, Lahore - 54800, Pakistan
^b Department of Human Genetics and Molecular biology, University of Health Sciences, Lahore - 54600, Pakistan
^c Department of Medical Education, Rashid Latif Medical College, Lahore, Pakistan
^d Department of Gynecology and Obstetrics, Hameed Latif Hospital, 14 – Abu Bakar Block, New Garden Town, Lahore - 54800 Pakistan
^e Department of Cellular Pathology, Royal Free Hospital, NW3 2QG, London, United Kingdom
^f Department of Medical Biochemistry, Ege University School of Medicine, Bornova Izmir, Turkey

^⁎Corresponding Author at: Lahore Institute of fertility and endocrinology, Hameed Latif Hospital, Lahore, Pakistan.Lahore Institute of fertility and endocrinologyHameed Latif HospitalLahorePakistan

Sous presse. Épreuves corrigées par l'auteur. Disponible en ligne depuis le Thursday 05 September 2019
Cet article a été publié dans un numéro de la revue, cliquez ici pour y accéder

Abstract

Despite many advances in assisted reproductive technology (ART), the most viable embryo selection remains a challenge for infertility treatment. This study was designed to investigate whether intra-follicular circulating cell-free DNA (cfDNA) fragments and Melatonin levels predict embryo quality in patients undergoing IVF treatment. A total of eight hundred and ninety-five follicular fluid (ff) samples were collected from 325 infertile patients undergoing IVF treatment. Patients were enrolled from August 2017 to December 2018 in the infertility center of a tertiary care hospital. A clear non-hematic follicular fluid was aspirated after the removal of eggs from the dominant follicles (>18mm) of each patient. Melatonin and E₂ levels in each follicular sample were estimated by immune-chemiluminescence using commercially available kits. ALU-qPCR evaluated cfDNA levels in individual follicular fluid samples. Our study presented a significant and negative relationship between intra-follicular cfDNA and melatonin concentration (-0.541: P<0.001). Each individual follicle contains measurable copy number of cfDNA [mean: 1.85±2.98ng/μl (median; 1.86ng/μl (95% Cl: 0.96–2.87)]. In pregnant women cfDNA copy number was significantly decreased in follicular fluid samples(ff) aspirated from matured oocytes than in immature ones [p<0.01; β = -0.42±0.49; median; 1.45ng/ml (95% Cl: 0.36–2.97) vs. 3.57ng/μl (95% Cl: 0.37–4.01) respectively. While melatonin concentration in ff samples corresponding to mature oocytes was significantly higher than in ff samples related to immature oocytes (p<0.001). Moreover, in pregnant women cfDNA level was significantly lower in ff samples related to oocytes which produces top-quality embryos versus low quality embryos [p<0.001; β=1.81±0.91; median; 1.25ng/μl (95% Cl: 0.35–1.97)] vs. [(median; 3.65ng/ml (95% Cl: 1.23–6.36)] respectively. Likewise, in non-pregnant women melatonin levels were significantly decreased in ff samples related to embryos with high fragmentation rate (≥25%) than embryos with low fragmentation rate (<25%; p<0.001). Conclusively, this study indicates that Intra-follicular cfDNA and melatonin concentration possibly a new supplemental tool that supports to establish an advanced non-invasive early prognostic test for the patients undergoing IVF/ICSI procedure.