Basic Science
Protocols
- Complete Follice Guidebook:
- Follicle Handbook: The handbook describes follicle isolation, encapsulation in alginate, and in vitro culture. In addition, there are protocols for encapsulation in a fibrin/alginate blend, removal of follicles from alginate, and in vitro maturation of oocytes following in vitro follicle culture.
- Reagent and Supply List for Working with Follicles: A comprehensive list detailing everything necessary to set up an in vitro follicle growth system.
- Certification for working with follicles: Listed here are the requirements that should be fulfilled prior to starting experiments to ensure that follicle isolation, encapsulation, and culture methods are being performed properly.
- Follicle Health and Quality Reference Guide: This guide provides useful parameters for assessing the initial quality of isolated follicles and for monitoring follicle health and growth during culture.
- Whole Follicle Fixation and Staining: This protocol describes how immunocytochemistry can be performed on intact follicles.
Videos
- Follicle Culture in Alginate Hydrogels. This 9-part video series presented by the Biomaterials Core provides a comprehensive “how to” tour of follicle culture techniques starting from ovary dissection and ending with follicle recovery from alginate following culture. Watch the videos.
- Human Follicles. These 3-dimensional movies of confocal reconstructions, taken by Susan Barrett, PhD, highlight the architecture of human follicles.
- In Vitro Grown Human Follicle with Antral Cavity. 3D movie generated from a 100 mm confocal z-stack (Zeiss LSM 510, 40x) of a human, 14-day in vitro grown follicle. This movie shows the newly formed antral cavity, the differentiation of a clear cumulus cell mass around the oocyte, and the mural granulosa cell layers. [F-Actin (red), Nuclei (blue)]. Movies were made on Volocity (Improvision/PerkinElmer). Watch the video.
- Transzonal Projections in Immature in Vivo Human Follicles. 3D movie generated from a 100 mm confocal z-stack (Zeiss LSM510, 40x) of a fresh-fixed, immature, human antral follicle showing the transzonal projections between the growing oocyte and the cumulus granulosa. [F-Actin (red), Nuclei (blue)].
Clinical Medicine
Videos
- Technique of Ovarian Isolation and Ligation. Video of ovarian vessel isolation and ligation technique presented by M. Patrick Lowe, M.D., Director of Robotics and Minimally Invasive Surgery (NPC). Watch the video.
- Dissection of the Human Ovary in Preparation for Cryopreservation. Video showing how human ovaries should be dissected in preparation for cryopreservation. Watch the video.
- Real World Options for Your Patients