Background: Depression is a burdensome psychiatric disorder presenting with disordered inflammation and neural plasticity. We conducted this study with an aim to explore the effect of stanniocalcin-1 (STC1) on inflammation and neuron injury in rats with depression-like behaviors.Methods: A model of depression-like behaviors was established in Wistar rats by stress stimulation. Adeno-associated virus (AAV)-packaged STC1 overexpression sequence or siRNA against STC1 was introduced into rats to enhance or silence the STC1 expression. Moreover, we measured pro-inflammatory and anti-inflammatory proteins, superoxide dismutase (SOD), catalase (CAT), malondialdehyde (MDA) and reactive oxygen species (ROS) production. An in vitro model was induced in hippocampal neurons by CORT to explore the effect of STC1 on the neuron viability, toxicity and apoptosis. RT-qPCR and Western blot assay were employed to determine the expression of STC1 and nuclear factor κB (NF-κB) signaling pathway-related genes.Results: STC1 was under-expressed in the hippocampus of rats with depression-like behaviors, while its overexpression could reduce the depression-like behaviors in the stress-stimulated rats. Furthermore, overexpression of STC1 resulted in enhanced neural plasticity, reduced release of pro-inflammatory proteins, elevated SOD and CAT and diminished MDA level in the hippocampus of rats with depression-like behaviors. Overexpressed STC1 blocked the ROS/NF-κB signaling pathway, thereby enhancing the viability of CORT-treated neurons while repressing their toxicity and apoptosis.Conclusion: Collectively, overexpression of STC1 inhibits inflammation and protects neuron injury in rats with depression-like behaviors by inactivating the ROS/NF-κB signaling pathway.

The endometrial receptive status is critical for a successful embryo implantation, but it only last for a short period of time, and the window of implantation (WOI) of each woman changes individually, which will lead to poor outcomes of assisted reproduction. This so-called WOI can be detected by molecular diagnostic method, endometrial receptivity analysis (ERA), which was gradually applied to clinical practice. This study aimed to evaluate the clinical efficacy of personalized embryo transfer (pET) guided by ERA in patients with and without RIF. A total of 3605 patients with previous failed embryo transfer (ET) cycle in the reproductive medicine center of Renmin Hospital Hubei University of Medicine from January 2016 to October 2022 were retrospectively analyzed. The 3605 patients were divided into non-RIF group and RIF group, among which 782 patients who received ERA test underwent personalized embryo transfer (pET). The decision whether to accept ERA test or not was based on the patient’s voluntary choice. We divided the 782 patients into normal WOI group and displaced WOI group according to the result of ERA test. The pregnancy outcomes were compared between the different groups. The age, number of previous ET cycle and serum E2/P ratio were mainly analyzed to investigate its relationship with displaced WOI. The clinical pregnancy rate and live birth rate in non-RIF with pET group were higher than that of non-RIF with non-personalized embryo transfer (npET) group (64.5% vs 58.3%, P = 0.025; 57.1% vs 48.3%, P = 0.003). The clinical pregnancy rate and the live birth rate in RIF with pET group were significantly higher than that of RIF with npET group (62.7% vs 49.3%, P < 0.001; 52.5% vs 40.4%, P < 0.001) after propensity score matching (PSM). The early abortion rate in the non-RIF with pET group was lower than that in the non-RIF with npET group (8.2% vs 13.0%, P = 0.038). There was a significant difference in age and the number of previous failed ET cycle between the normal WOI group and displaced WOI group (age: 32.26 vs 33.53 years, P < 0.001; the number of previous failed ET cycle: 1.68 vs 2.04, P < 0.001). Logistic regression analysis also showed that the age and number of previous failed ET cycles were positively correlated with displaced WOI. The displaced WOI rate increased gradually with the increase of age and number of previous failed ET cycle; the displaced WOI rate in the median group (4.46 < E2/P ≤ 10.39 pg/ng) was significantly lower than that in the other two groups (54.8% vs 40.6% vs 58.5%, P < 0.001). The clinical pregnancy rate and live birth rate of patients with previous failed ET cycle was improved after pET guided by ERA, especially in RIF patients; the early abortion rate of the non-RIF patient was reduced after pET guided by ERA. An appropriate E2/P ratio was beneficial for maintaining endometrial receptivity state, and the age and number of previous failed ET cycle was correlated with increased displaced WOI.

Background: The gonadotropin-releasing hormone agonist (GnRH-a) has been used in in vitro fertilization/intracytoplasmic sperm injection (IVF/ICSI) cycles for a long time. This paper evaluates the efficacy and safety of two commonly used protocols (follicular-phase depot GnRH-a protocol and daily mid-luteal long GnRH-a protocol) in normal responders undergoing IVF/ICSI using propensity score matching (PSM) analysis. Methods: A total of 6,816 infertile women treated within the period from January 2016 to September 2020 were stratified into cohorts. A total of 2,851 patients received the long-acting group (depot GnRH-a protocol), and 1,193 used the short-acting group (long GnRH-a protocol) after the data-selection process. PSM was utilized for sampling by up to 1:1 nearest neighbour matching to adjust the numerical difference and balance the confounders between groups. The primary outcome was the live birth rate (LBR). Multivariable logistic analysis was used to evaluate the difference between these two protocols in relation to the LBR. Result(s): In this study, 1:1 propensity score matching was performed to create a perfect match of 964 patients in each group. After matching, the blastocyst formation rates, oestradiol (E₂) value on Day hCG + 9, progesterone (P) value on Day hCG + 9, implantation rates, clinical pregnancy rates, and LBR were more favourable in the depot GnRH-a protocol than in the long GnRH-a protocol (P < 0.05). However, the moderate or severe OHSS rates were higher in the depot group than in the long group (P < 0.001). There were no significant differences in endometrial thickness, luteal support medication, early pregnancy loss rates, mid- and late-term pregnancy loss rates, or foetal malformation rates between the two protocols. Conclusion(s): Compared with the daily short-acting GnRH agonist protocol, the follicular-phase depot GnRH-a protocol might improve LBRs in normogonadotropic women without discernible differences in luteal function and child health.

Non-invasive prenatal testing is widely used for screening common fetal aneuploidy disorders such as trisomy 21, trisomy 18, and trisomy 13. However, its ability to detect rare autosomal trisomies has introduced a new layer of complexity and clinical uncertainty. A retrospective analysis was conducted on the prenatal diagnostic results and pregnancy outcomes of cases identified as high-risk for rare autosomal trisomies through non-invasive prenatal testing at the reproductive medicine center, Renmin hospital, Hubei university of medicine, from 2015 to 2023. 66 cases identified as high-risk for rare autosomeal trisomies, yielding a detection rate of 0.20% (66/33,079). 7 declined amniocentesis, while the others underwent the procedure. Prenatal diagnostic procedures did not confirm the presence of the corresponding rare autosomal trisomy in any of these cases. Among the 66 cases of rare autosomal trisomies (RATs), 5 cases were lost to follow-up, and 1 case underwent termination of pregnancy (TOP) for personal reasons, leaving 60 cases with valid pregnancy outcomes. Of these 60 valid outcomes, 50 (83.33%) resulted in full-term births, while 10 (16.67%) experienced adverse pregnancy outcomes. Prenatal diagnosis for high-risk rare autosomal trisomies typically reveals a normal karyotype with no detectable chromosomal abnormalities, and most cases can achieve full-term pregnancy outcomes. However, adverse pregnancy outcomes such as preterm birth, fetal demise, placental abnormalities, and intrauterine growth restriction are common and should be given clinical attention and consideration.

Background: In an in vitro fertilization (IVF) cycle, the embryo ends its wandering time and begins the process of implantation into the uterine cavity on the seventh day after oocyte pick-up (OPU + 7), which is closer than OPU + 5 to the time of nidation. Therefore, measuring the oestradiol (E2)/progesterone (P) ratio on OPU + 7 may be helpful for predicting pregnancy outcomes. Methods: This is a retrospective cohort study of 2,257 women undergoing a follicular-phase depot gonadotropin-releasing hormone agonist (GnRH-a) protocol for in vitro fertilization /intracytoplasmic sperm injection (IVF/ICSI) treatment and fresh blastocyst embryo transfer cycles at a university-affiliated fertility center between January 2016 and April 2021. First, 2,257 women were split into two groups based on clinical pregnancy for analyzing the levels of E₂ and P and the E₂/P ratio on the day of OPU + 2, OPU + 5 and OPU + 7. And then 2,257 cycles were stratified into three groups based on E₂/P ratio tertiles on OPU + 7: the low group (1.3–15.7 pg/ng), middle group (15.7–28.8 pg/ng), and high group (28.8–487.2 pg/ng). The threshold effect of the E₂/P ratio on OPU + 7 on live birth was investigated using a two-piecewise linear regression model and a smoothing function curve. Results: The level of P in the clinical pregnancy group were lower than that in the nonclinical pregnancy group on both OPU + 2 and OPU + 7 (201.9 ± 71.6 ng/ml vs 213.1 ± 77.6 ng/ml, 89.5 ± 88.5 ng/ml vs 99.5 ± 94.9 ng/ml, P < 0.05). The E₂/P ratio in the clinical pregnancy group were higher than that in the nonclinical pregnancy group on both OPU + 2 and OPU + 7 (8.4 ± 6.5 pg/ng vs 8.0 ± 6.8 pg/ng, 32.3 ± 38.5 pg/ng vs 25.2 ± 31.0 pg/ng, P < 0.01). The E₂/P ratio on OPU + 7 was positively associated with positive hCG (adjusted OR = 1.01; 95% CI, 1.01–1.02; P < 0.0001), clinical pregnancy (adjusted OR = 1.01; 95% CI, 1.00–1.01; P = 0.0067) and live birth (adjusted OR = 1.01; 95% CI, 1.00–1.01; P < 0.001), and a nonlinear correlation was observed between the E₂/P ratio and LBR on OPU + 7. Conclusions: A higher E₂/P ratio is associated with a higher LBR, but the E₂/P ratio should be maintained within a suitable range.