The Research Of Different Aetiologies Of Low Oestradiol Response To Gonadotropin

Objective: The aim of the study is to investigate if follicle stimulating hormone(FSH) and luteinizing hormone(LH) receptor expression is altered on granulosa cells(GCs) of women with low oestradiol responses to gonadotropin. Another aim of the study is to determine if follicles are more luteinized in low responders than normal responders.Methods: A prospective trial from October in 2005 to January in 2006 was conducted in 48 IVF-ET cycles. GCs were obtained from mature follicles (≥17mm) on the day of oocytes retrieval. FSH-R and LH-R expression were detected by cytometry. FSH-R was labelled with a rabbit polyclonal antibody against amino acids 1-190 mapping at the N-terminus of FSH-R of human origin. LH-R was labelled with an affinity purified goat polyclonal antibody raised against a peptide mapping within an internal region of LH-R of human origin. And they were compared to negative controls. Hormone levels were measured in follicular fluid from mature follicles (≥17mm) and in serum obtained on the day of oocyte retrieval during controlled ovarian stimulation by immunoassay kits. The gonadotropin response was defined as a ratio of peak oestradiol/ number of gonadotropin ampoules.Results: Gonadotropin receptors expressed on GCs with a large variation among individuals. Gonadotropin receptors expression on GCs was not correlated with the number of gonadotropin ampoules administered or peak oestradiol response or the ratio of peak oestradiol/ number of gonadotropin ampoules. FSH-R expression was not different on GCs from low and normal responders. However, LH-R expression was higher on GCs of low responders compared to those of normal responders. The levels of FSH in follicular fluid of...