PURPOSE: Specific serum beta human chorionic gonadotropin (β-hCG) parameters that can predict live birth after an embryo transfer have yet to be defined. METHODS: We performed a retrospective cohort study of 1,028 patients with a detectabl…
Objective: Using a baboon model, we determined the changing expression of Retinoic Acid (RA) target genes during the menstrual cycle and during disease progression. This change could explain the cellular response and changes characteristic …
The female reproductive system ages before any other organ system in the body. This phenomenon can have tangible clinical implications leading to infertility, miscarriages, birth defects and systemic deterioration due to estrogen loss. "Fib…
OBJECTIVE: To develop diagnostic criteria for chronic endometritis and compare the prevalence of chronic endometritis between women with recurrent pregnancy loss (RPL) and controls. DESIGN: Cohort study. SETTING: Single academic fertility…
Fibrosis is a hallmark of aging tissues which often leads to altered architecture and function. The ovary is the first organ to show overt signs of aging, including increased fibrosis in the ovarian stroma. How this fibrosis affects ovarian…
Cancer survivorship has increased considerably, but common cancer treatments may threaten female reproductive health and fertility. In females, standard fertility preservation techniques include egg and embryo banking and ovarian tissue cry…
Decidualization alters multiple molecular pathways in endometrium to permit successful embryo implantation. We have reported that paracrine factors, including retinoids, secreted from progesterone-treated endometrial stromal cells, act on n…
While endometriosis is a benign condition, the presence of endometriosis has been associated with the development of several types of cancers, including ovarian. Endometriomas, or ovarian endometriotic cysts, are found in 17-44% of patients…
Endometriosis is an estrogen-dependent disease in which progesterone resistance and inflammation have been found to be major mechanisms responsible for its development and progression. When compared to eutopic endometrium, key molecules hav…
PURPOSE: Mutations in the BRCA1/2 genes are associated with breast and ovarian cancer susceptibility. Recent studies have suggested that the BRCA mutation might be associated with occult primary ovarian insufficiency. To evaluate fertility,…
OBJECTIVE: To determine the expression and biological roles of serum and glucocorticoid-regulated kinase (SGK1) in tissues and cells from patients with endometriosis and from healthy control subjects. DESIGN: Case-control. SETTING: Univer…
OBJECTIVE: Fenretinide is a synthetic retinoid analogue that promotes apoptosis but has decreased toxicity when compared to other retinoids. We have previously shown that retinoic acid (RA) production in endometriotic tissue is decreased, r…
Endometriosis is a gynecological disease defined by the extrauterine growth of endometrial-like cells that cause chronic pain and infertility. The disease is limited to primates that exhibit spontaneous decidualization, and diseased cells a…
OBJECTIVE: To define the expression and function of DNA methyltransferases (DNMTs) in response to decidualizing stimuli in endometriotic cells compared with healthy endometrial stroma. DESIGN: Basic science. SETTING: University research c…
Endometriosis is a benign gynecological condition characterized by specific histological, molecular, and clinical findings. It affects 5%-10% of premenopausal women, is a cause of infertility, and has been implicated as a precursor for cert…
Endometriosis has been initially described as the presence of ectopic endometrial tissue on pelvic organs or in extrapelvic sites; and this has been used as its key pathologic feature ever since. Endometriosis responds to fluctuations in es…
In endometriosis, stromal and epithelial cells from the endometrium form extrauterine lesions and persist in response to estrogen (E2) and prostaglandin E2 (PGE2). Stromal cells produce excessive quantities of estrogen and PGE2 in a feed-fo…
Resistance to progestin treatment is a major hurdle in the treatment of advanced and reoccurring endometrial cancer. Fenretinide is a synthetic retinoid that has been evaluated in clinical trials as a cancer therapeutic and chemo-preventive…
Endometriosis is a gynecological disease defined by the extrauterine growth of endometrial-like cells that cause chronic pain and infertility. The disease is limited to primates that exhibit spontaneous decidualization, and diseased cells a…
OBJECTIVE: To quantify the number of follicles in patients with ovarian pathologies, benign and malignant, in pregnant and nonpregnant states and to determine how the presence of ovarian masses and BRCA status affects follicular counts. MA…
Endometriosis is a gynecological condition characterized by specific histological, molecular and clinical findings, that affects 5-10% of premenopausal women and has been implicated as a precursor for certain types of ovarian cancer. Clinic…