title: Alginate scaffold for organ culture of cryopreserved-thawed human ovarian cortical follicles.
abstract: OBJECTIVE
  To compare macroporous alginate scaffolds with Matrigel for culturing frozen-thawed human primordial follicles in organ culture.
  
  
  METHODS
  Twelve girls/women donated ovarian tissue. One tissue sample was fixed immediately after thawing (uncultured samples). Slices were cultured for 2 weeks on either Matrigel or on alginate scaffolds with a serum-free culture medium. Growth evaluation consisted of follicular counts and classification, immunohistochemistry and measurement of 17β-Estradiol (E(2)) production.
  
  
  RESULTS
  The number of developing follicles was significantly higher in alginate scaffold-cultured samples than on Matrigel with a concomitant decrease in the number of primordial follicles in alginate scaffold-cultured samples than uncultured samples. The number of atretic follicles after 1 week was significantly higher in the Matrigel-cultured samples than in the alginate scaffold cultured samples. E(2) production was similar in both groups.
  
  
  CONCLUSIONS
  Three dimensional alginate scaffolds are a promising putative in vitro technology for developing human primordial follicles.
authors.affiliation: Infertility and IVF Unit, Helen Schneider Hospital for Women, Rabin Medical Center, Beilinson Hospital, Petach Tikva and Sackler Faculty of Medicine,Tel Aviv University,Tel Aviv, Israel.
authors.forename: Alon
authors.initials: A
authors.lastname: Kedem
authors.forename: Ariel
authors.initials: A
authors.lastname: Hourvitz
authors.forename: Benjamin
authors.initials: B
authors.lastname: Fisch
authors.forename: Michal
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Shachar
authors.forename: Smadar
authors.initials: S
authors.lastname: Cohen
authors.forename: Avi
authors.initials: A
authors.lastname: Ben-Haroush
authors.forename: Joshua
authors.initials: J
authors.lastname: Dor
authors.forename: Enrique
authors.initials: E
authors.lastname: Freud
authors.forename: Carmela
authors.initials: C
authors.lastname: Felz
authors.forename: Ronit
authors.initials: R
authors.lastname: Abir
mesh_terms: D000293:Adolescent; D000328:Adult; D000464:Alginates; D002648:Child; D015925:Cryopreservation; D004958:Estradiol; D005260:Female; D006801:Humans; D007150:Immunohistochemistry; D009924:Organ Culture Techniques / Q000379:methods; D006080:Ovarian Follicle / Q000254:growth & development* / Q000378:metabolism; D018809:Proliferating Cell Nuclear Antigen / Q000378:metabolism; D046509:Tissue Culture Techniques; D054457:Tissue Scaffolds
chemical_list: D000464:Alginates; D018809:Proliferating Cell Nuclear Antigen; D004958:Estradiol