Carlo Alviggi , Rossella E. Nappi , Antonio La Marca , Filippo Maria Ubaldi , Alberto Vaiarelli
{"title":"The metrics maze in science: navigating academic evaluation without journalistic pressures","authors":"Carlo Alviggi , Rossella E. Nappi , Antonio La Marca , Filippo Maria Ubaldi , Alberto Vaiarelli","doi":"10.1016/j.rbmo.2024.103935","DOIUrl":"10.1016/j.rbmo.2024.103935","url":null,"abstract":"<div><p>In recent years a troubling trend has emerged in the medical research field, notably in reproductive medicine, manifesting an increased emphasis on quantity over quality in articles published.</p><p>The pressure to collect copious publication records risks compromising meticulous expertise and impactful contributions. This tendency is exemplified by the rise of ‘hyper-prolific researchers’ publishing at an extraordinary rate (i.e. every 5 days), prompting a deeper analysis of the reasons underlying this behaviour. Prioritizing rapid publication over Galileo Galilei's systematic scientific principles may lead to a superficial approach driven by quantitative targets. Thus, the overreliance on metrics to facilitate academic careers has shifted the focus to numerical quantification rather than the real scientific contribution, raising concerns about the effectiveness of the evaluation systems. The Hamletian question is: are we scientist or journalist? Addressing these issues could necessitate a crucial re-evaluation of the assessment criteria, emphasizing a balance between quantity and quality to foster an academic environment that values meaningful contributions and innovation.</p></div>","PeriodicalId":21134,"journal":{"name":"Reproductive biomedicine online","volume":null,"pages":null},"PeriodicalIF":3.7,"publicationDate":"2024-07-01","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"140272879","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":2,"RegionCategory":"医学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
Barbara Lawrenz , Peter Humaidan , Christophe Blockeel , Juan-Antonio Garcia-Velasco , Human M. Fatemi
{"title":"High-impact journal publishing: the devil is in the detail!","authors":"Barbara Lawrenz , Peter Humaidan , Christophe Blockeel , Juan-Antonio Garcia-Velasco , Human M. Fatemi","doi":"10.1016/j.rbmo.2024.103936","DOIUrl":"10.1016/j.rbmo.2024.103936","url":null,"abstract":"<div><p>Research in medicine is an indispensable tool to advance knowledge and improve patient care. This may be particularly true in the field of human reproduction as it is a relatively new field and treatment options are rapidly evolving. This is of particular importance in an emerging field like ‘human reproduction’, where treatment options evolve fast.The cornerstone of evidence-based knowledge, leading to evidence-based treatment decisions, is randomized controlled trials as they explore the benefits of new treatment approaches. The study design and performance are crucial and, if they are carried out correctly, solid conclusions can be drawn and be implemented in daily clinical routines. The dissemination of new findings throughout the scientific community occurs in the form of publications in scientific journals, and the importance of the journal is reflected in part by the impact factor. The peer review process before publication is fundamental in preventing flaws in the study design. Thus, readers of journals with a high impact factor usually rely on a thorough peer review process and therefore might not question the published data. However, even papers published in high-impact journals might not be free of flaws, so the aim of this paper is to encourage readers to be aware of this fact and critically read scientific papers as ‘the devil lies in the details’.</p></div>","PeriodicalId":21134,"journal":{"name":"Reproductive biomedicine online","volume":null,"pages":null},"PeriodicalIF":3.7,"publicationDate":"2024-07-01","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"140613027","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":2,"RegionCategory":"医学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
{"title":"Avoiding weekend frozen embryo transfer in modified natural cycles: is it possible?","authors":"Barbara Lawrenz , Christophe Blockeel","doi":"10.1016/j.rbmo.2023.103775","DOIUrl":"10.1016/j.rbmo.2023.103775","url":null,"abstract":"<div><p>In this era of the freeze-all strategy, the prevalence of frozen embryo transfer (FET) cycles is increasing rapidly. Although still quite often used, the hormone replacement therapy cycle to prepare a FET should now belong to the past, unless strictly necessary. This raises questions about possible flexible protocols for the preparation of an FET cycle in a (modified) natural cycle. In this viewpoint, an overview of the different options is discussed, stressing the importance of the corpus luteum.</p></div>","PeriodicalId":21134,"journal":{"name":"Reproductive biomedicine online","volume":null,"pages":null},"PeriodicalIF":3.7,"publicationDate":"2024-07-01","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"138689286","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":2,"RegionCategory":"医学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
Carlos Alonso-Mayo , Graciela Kohls , Samuel Santos-Ribeiro , Sergio Reis Soares , Juan A. Garcia-Velasco
{"title":"Modified natural cycle allows a window of 7 days for frozen embryo transfer planning","authors":"Carlos Alonso-Mayo , Graciela Kohls , Samuel Santos-Ribeiro , Sergio Reis Soares , Juan A. Garcia-Velasco","doi":"10.1016/j.rbmo.2023.103774","DOIUrl":"10.1016/j.rbmo.2023.103774","url":null,"abstract":"<div><h3>Research question</h3><p>Should ovulation be triggered in a modified natural cycle (mNC) with recombinant human chorionic gonadotrophin (rHCG) as soon as a mean follicle diameter of 17 mm is visible, or is more flexible planning possible?</p></div><div><h3>Design</h3><p>This multicentre, retrospective, observational study of 3087 single frozen blastocyst transfers in mNC was carried out between January 2020 and September 2022. The inclusion criteria included endometrial thickness ≥7 mm and serum progesterone <1.5 ng/ml. The main outcome was ongoing pregnancy rate. Secondary end-points were pregnancy rate, implantation rate, clinical pregnancy rate and miscarriage rate. The mean follicle size at triggering was stratified into three groups (13.0–15.9, 16.0–18.9 and 19.0–22 mm).</p></div><div><h3>Results</h3><p>The baseline characteristics between the groups did not vary significantly for age, body mass index and the donor's age for egg donation. No differences were found in pregnancy rate (64.5%, 60.2% and 57.4%; <em>P</em> = 0.19), clinical pregnancy rate (60.5%, 52.8% and 50.6%; <em>P</em> = 0.10), implantation rate (62.10%, 52.9% and 51.0%; <em>P</em> = 0.05) or miscarriage rate (15.0%, 22.2%; and 25.0%; <em>P</em> = 0.11). Although ongoing pregnancy rate (54.9%, 46.8% and 43.1%; <em>P</em> = 0.02) varied significantly in the univariable analysis, it was no longer significant after adjustment for the use of preimplantation genetic testing for aneuploidies and egg donation.</p></div><div><h3>Conclusions</h3><p>The findings showed rHCG could be flexibly administered with a mean follicle size between 13 and 22 mm as long as adequate endometrial characteristics are met, and serum progesterone is <1.5 ng/ml. Considering the follicular growth rate of 1–1.5 mm/day, this approach could allow a flexibility for FET scheduling of 6–7 days, simplifying mNC FET planning in clinical practice.</p></div>","PeriodicalId":21134,"journal":{"name":"Reproductive biomedicine online","volume":null,"pages":null},"PeriodicalIF":3.7,"publicationDate":"2024-07-01","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"https://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S1472648323008738/pdfft?md5=c2484fc171b8e3eceedac8f8d559a2fb&pid=1-s2.0-S1472648323008738-main.pdf","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"138689384","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":2,"RegionCategory":"医学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"OA","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
Amanda S. Farrell , Megan Yuen , Laura E. Dodge , Denny Sakkas , Denis Vaughan , Thomas L. Toth
{"title":"Perinatal outcomes are similar in programmed and modified natural frozen embryo transfer cycles","authors":"Amanda S. Farrell , Megan Yuen , Laura E. Dodge , Denny Sakkas , Denis Vaughan , Thomas L. Toth","doi":"10.1016/j.rbmo.2024.104347","DOIUrl":"10.1016/j.rbmo.2024.104347","url":null,"abstract":"<div><h3>Research question</h3><p>How do perinatal outcomes differ between programmed and modified natural frozen embryo transfer (FET) cycles?</p></div><div><h3>Design</h3><p>A retrospective cohort study of 839 patients was undertaken at a university-affiliated fertility practice undergoing single blastocyst FET cycles between 2014 and 2020. The primary outcome measures were the incidence of ischaemic placental disease, small for gestational age (SGA), intrauterine growth restriction (IUGR), preterm delivery, birth weight, and mode of delivery.</p></div><div><h3>Results</h3><p>When comparing programmed FET cycles with modified natural FET cycles, there was no increased risk of ischaemic placental disease [adjusted risk ratio (aRR) 0.83, 95% CI 0.61–1.14], IUGR (unadjusted RR 0.50, 95% CI 0.14–1.77), preterm delivery (aRR 1.11, 95% CI 0.72–1.70) or SGA (aRR 0.69, 95% CI 0.40–1.19). Patients in the programmed cohort had increased risk of caesarean delivery (aRR 1.32, 95% CI 1.10–1.59). These outcomes were unchanged when limited to patients undergoing their first FET cycle.</p></div><div><h3>Conclusions</h3><p>There are no differences in patient and neonatal clinical outcomes between programmed and modified natural FET cycles. The choice of FET protocol should remain a shared decision between patient and provider.</p></div>","PeriodicalId":21134,"journal":{"name":"Reproductive biomedicine online","volume":null,"pages":null},"PeriodicalIF":3.7,"publicationDate":"2024-06-27","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"142098793","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":2,"RegionCategory":"医学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
Alicia Broussard , Bill Venier , Abeer Salhia Rafati , Angeline Beltsos , Joseph Lee , Jessica Bailey , Denny Sakkas , Michael G. Collins
{"title":"Effort in manual operation of reproductive health cryostorage facilities","authors":"Alicia Broussard , Bill Venier , Abeer Salhia Rafati , Angeline Beltsos , Joseph Lee , Jessica Bailey , Denny Sakkas , Michael G. Collins","doi":"10.1016/j.rbmo.2024.104348","DOIUrl":"10.1016/j.rbmo.2024.104348","url":null,"abstract":"<div><h3>Research question</h3><p>What areas of manual IVF cryostorage operations are common to the safe operation of IVF cryostorage facilities and require effort from embryologists?</p></div><div><h3>Design</h3><p>Observational time and motion data were collected by two observers equipped with the digital cameras over 2 weeks at four well-characterized US IVF centres (sites α, β, γ and δ) from 12 participants performing cryostorage tasks. To understand the work processes of the different sites and assist in the data analysis, informal interviews were conducted with the study participants and laboratory directors. Data were analysed to identify work processes that might be eliminated or diminished by automation and software improvements.</p></div><div><h3>Results</h3><p>On average, it took 3.4 data record queries per retrieval from cryostorage to identify a cane, while the canister was lifted an average of 1.5 times per retrieval, with a mean 11.8 ± 9.2 s per lift. Of the total time spent working with cryostorage equipment, 47.25% was of a fatiguing nature. Sites α, β and γ utilized one person to fill the liquid nitrogen storage Dewars, while site δ had two technicians working in tandem to move and fill the Dewars, with different frequencies and determination factors for refills and efficiencies.</p></div><div><h3>Conclusions</h3><p>This time and motion study demonstrated significant time investment, task redundancy and fatiguing working conditions among embryologists using manual cryostorage processes. There was a disparity of processes and space capacity across different laboratories. Some of these issues may be addressed by the integration of automation and technology solutions.</p></div>","PeriodicalId":21134,"journal":{"name":"Reproductive biomedicine online","volume":null,"pages":null},"PeriodicalIF":3.7,"publicationDate":"2024-06-24","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"https://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S1472648324005376/pdfft?md5=42e95bffc126b0109ab7cca1a06dbc58&pid=1-s2.0-S1472648324005376-main.pdf","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"142098791","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":2,"RegionCategory":"医学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"OA","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
C.L. Nicholson , M. Dean , A. Attia , P.A. Milne , S. Martins da Silva
{"title":"Artificial oocyte activation improves ICSI outcomes following unexplained fertilization abnormalities","authors":"C.L. Nicholson , M. Dean , A. Attia , P.A. Milne , S. Martins da Silva","doi":"10.1016/j.rbmo.2024.104327","DOIUrl":"10.1016/j.rbmo.2024.104327","url":null,"abstract":"<div><h3>Research question</h3><p>Is artificial oocyte activation (AOA) effective for patients with unexplained low or no fertilization following IVF/intracytoplasmic sperm injection (ICSI)?</p></div><div><h3>Design</h3><p>All IVF/ICSI cases resulting in total fertilization failure or fertilization rate ≤25% at Ninewells Assisted Conception Unit, Dundee between January 2014 and December 2021 (<em>n</em> = 231) were reviewed contemporaneously. After exclusion of obvious stimulation, egg, sperm and/or assisted reproductive technology laboratory factors, patients with at least one cycle of IVF/ICSI resulting in apparently unexplained fertilization abnormalities were offered research investigations, including sperm immunocytochemistry for phospholipase C zeta (PLCζ) protein expression. This retrospective case–control cohort study evaluated laboratory and clinical outcomes for 39 couples (15 attended for sperm studies research) that subsequently undertook ICSI-AOA with Ca<sup>2+</sup> ionophore.</p></div><div><h3>Results</h3><p>Comparing preceding IVF/ICSI and subsequent ICSI-AOA for each patient, the number of eggs collected was similar; however, ICSI-AOA resulted in a significantly improved fertilization rate (57.2% versus 7.1%; <em>P</em> < 0.0001). The uplift for a subset of 10 patients identified with PLCζ deficiency was 66.3% versus 4.6% (<em>P</em> < 0.0001). Overall, ICSI-AOA resulted in a higher number of fresh embryo transfers (94.6% versus 33.3%; <em>P</em> < 0.0001), a significantly higher clinical pregnancy rate (CPR) and live birth rate (LBR; 18.9% versus 2.6%; <em>P</em> = 0.02), a significant increase in cycles with surplus embryos suitable for cryostorage (43.6% versus 0%; <em>P</em> < 0.0001), and increased cumulative CPR (41.0% versus 2.6%; <em>P</em> < 0.0001) and LBR (38.5% versus 2.6%; <em>P</em> < 0.0001).</p></div><div><h3>Conclusion</h3><p>AOA is a powerful tool that can transform clinical outcomes for couples experiencing apparently unexplained fertilization abnormalities. PLCζ assays have the potential to be valuable diagnostic tools to determine patient selection for ICSI-AOA, and research efforts should continue to focus on their development.</p></div>","PeriodicalId":21134,"journal":{"name":"Reproductive biomedicine online","volume":null,"pages":null},"PeriodicalIF":3.7,"publicationDate":"2024-06-22","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"https://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S1472648324005169/pdfft?md5=703e610a34e64934d0cab63c4a41c609&pid=1-s2.0-S1472648324005169-main.pdf","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"142146148","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":2,"RegionCategory":"医学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"OA","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
Junting Chu, Shanyue Guan, Ruonan Ma, Xiangyang Zhang, Song Ning, Wenyan Song, Guidong Yao, Senlin Shi, Haixia Jin
{"title":"Relationship between fresh single embryo morphology scores and serum HCG values at 14 days and 14–18-day doubling values","authors":"Junting Chu, Shanyue Guan, Ruonan Ma, Xiangyang Zhang, Song Ning, Wenyan Song, Guidong Yao, Senlin Shi, Haixia Jin","doi":"10.1016/j.rbmo.2024.104325","DOIUrl":"10.1016/j.rbmo.2024.104325","url":null,"abstract":"<div><h3>Research question</h3><p>What is the effect of embryo morphology score on 14-day β-HCG levels and 14–18-day β-HCG doubling values, and do they have differences in day-3 embryo or day-5 blastocyst transfers?</p></div><div><h3>Design</h3><p>Retrospective analysis of 4434 fresh cycles of single embryo transfers (SET) with β-HCG ≥15 mIU/ml on day 14 after transfer via IVF and ICSI. The correlation between embryo morphology score and 14-day β-HCG was examined. Doubling of 14–18 day β-HCG was analysed in 2628 cycles to determine correlations with embryo morphology score.</p></div><div><h3>Results</h3><p>In day-3 SET, number of embryonic cells was positively correlated with 14-day post-transfer β-HCG values (R = 0.076; <em>P</em> = 0.013). No significant correlation was observed between the grade of the transferred embryos and the 14–18-day serum β-HCG doubling values. In day-5 single blastocyst transfers, the degree of blastocyst expansion, trophoblast cell and inner cell mass (ICM) grades demonstrated a significant positive correlation with 14-day post-transfer β-HCG (<em>P</em> < 0.001, <em>P</em> = 0.014, <em>P</em> = 0.003). Degree of blastocyst expansion was significantly correlated with 14–18-day β-HCG doubling values (R = –0.051, <em>P</em> = 0.027). Grades of the ICM and trophoblast cells showed no significant correlation with 14–18-day β-HCG doubling values.</p></div><div><h3>Conclusion</h3><p>In fresh SET, embryo morphology score influences 14-day β-HCG values in day-3 embryos and day-5 blastocyst transfers. Embryo morphology score in day-3 SET does not affect 14–18-day β-HCG doubling values. Degree of blastocyst expansion significantly affects 14–18-day β-HCG doubling values in day-5 blastocyst transfers.</p></div>","PeriodicalId":21134,"journal":{"name":"Reproductive biomedicine online","volume":null,"pages":null},"PeriodicalIF":3.7,"publicationDate":"2024-06-22","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"142098792","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":2,"RegionCategory":"医学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
Chang Liu , Peng Chen , Zhuo Yang , Keming Zhang , Fang Chen , Yanmei Zhu , Jing Liu , Liying Liu , Danni Wang , Danbo Wang
{"title":"New insights into molecular mechanisms underlying malignant transformation of endometriosis: BANCR promotes miR-612/CPNE3 pathway activity","authors":"Chang Liu , Peng Chen , Zhuo Yang , Keming Zhang , Fang Chen , Yanmei Zhu , Jing Liu , Liying Liu , Danni Wang , Danbo Wang","doi":"10.1016/j.rbmo.2024.104326","DOIUrl":"10.1016/j.rbmo.2024.104326","url":null,"abstract":"<div><h3>Research question</h3><div>Does LncRNA <em>BANCR</em> promote the malignant transformation of endometriosis by activating the miR-612/CPNE3 pathway?</div></div><div><h3>Design</h3><div>The expression patterns of <em>BANCR</em>, miR-612 and <em>CPNE3</em> in normal endometrium, eutopic endometrium from endometriosis, eutopic endometrium or malignant tissues from endometriosis-associated ovarian cancer. On the basis of primary normal endometrial stromal cells (NESC) and eutopic endometrial stromal cells (EESC), the regulatory relationships between <em>BANCR</em>, miR-612 and <em>CPNE3</em>, and the potential mechanisms that promote the malignant transformation of endometriosis, were elucidated <em>in vitro</em> and <em>in vivo</em>.</div></div><div><h3>Results</h3><div>The expression levels of <em>BANCR</em> and <em>CPNE3</em> were lowest in normal endometrium, significantly increased in eutopic endometrium (<em>P</em> < 0.05) and was significantly increased in eutopic endometrium (<em>P</em> < 0.05). During the malignant transformation of endometriosis, the expression levels of <em>BANCR</em> and CPNE3 were significantly upregulated (<em>P</em> < 0.05), whereas those of miR-612 were significantly downregulated (<em>P</em> < 0.05). miRNA-612 was found to target <em>BANCR</em> and <em>CPNE3</em>. The overexpression and knockdown of <em>BANCR</em> in NESC and EESC upregulated and downregulated the expression of CPNE3 and promoted or prevented cell proliferation and migration, respectively; these effects were reversed by miR-612 mimics and inhibitor. These changes were all statistically significant (<em>P</em> < 0.05). In-vivo experiments revealed that <em>BANCR</em> significantly increased the survival of subcutaneous endometrial cells by regulating miR-612/CPNE3 (<em>P</em> < 0.05).</div></div><div><h3>Conclusion</h3><div>The expression of <em>BANCR</em> gradually increased with the progression of endometriosis during malignant transformation, and promoted the proliferation and migration of endometrial cells via the miR-612/CPNE3 pathway. <em>BANCR</em> may represent a novel target for monitoring the malignant transformation of endometriosis.</div></div>","PeriodicalId":21134,"journal":{"name":"Reproductive biomedicine online","volume":null,"pages":null},"PeriodicalIF":3.7,"publicationDate":"2024-06-21","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"142401133","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":2,"RegionCategory":"医学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}