BACKGROUND In humans, normal healthy children are regularly produced through
fertilization of fresh oocytes with fresh spermatozoa. However, asynchrony between oocytes …

BACKGROUND Mitochondria are multitasking organelles involved in ATP synthesis,
reactive oxygen species (ROS) production, calcium signalling and apoptosis; and …

Mitochondria have long been known to be the powerhouses of the cell but they also
contribute to redox and Ca 2+ homeostasis, provide intermediary metabolites and store …

BACKGROUND Mammalian oocytes are activated by intracellular calcium (Ca2+)
oscillations following gamete fusion. Recent evidence implicates a sperm-specific …

Mammalian oocytes are long-lived cells in the human body. They initiate meiosis already in
the embryonic ovary, arrest meiotically for long periods in dictyate stage, and resume …

Energy homeostasis of the oocyte is a crucial determinant of fertility. Following ovulation, the
oocyte is exposed to the unique environment of the Fallopian tube, and this is reflected in a …

Aging of the unfertilized oocyte inevitably occurs following ovulation, limiting its fertilizable
life span. However, the mechanisms that regulate oocyte aging are still unclear. We …

In spite of the optimisation of cryopreservation protocols, post-thawing trauma to mammalian
gametes cannot be completely avoided. Based on recent literature, cellular cryodamage in …

The quality of metaphase II oocytes deteriorates rapidly following ovulation as the result of
an aging process associated with impaired fertilizing potential, disrupted developmental …

Reviews in Developmental Biology have covered the pathways that generate the all-
important intracellular calcium (Ca2+) signal at fertilization [Miyazaki, S., Shirakawa, H …