title: Restoring Fertility with Cryopreserved Prepubertal Testicular Tissue: Perspectives with Hydrogel Encapsulation, Nanotechnology, and Bioengineered Scaffolds.
abstract: New and improved oncological therapies are now able to cure more than 80% of cancer-affected children in Europe. However, such treatments are gonadotoxic and result in fertility issues, especially in boys who are not able to provide a sperm sample before starting chemo/radiotherapy because of their prepubertal state. For these boys, cryopreservation of immature testicular tissue (ITT) is the only available option, aiming to preserve spermatogonial stem cells (SSCs). Both slow-freezing and vitrification have been investigated to this end and are now applied in a clinical setting for SSC cryopreservation. Research now has to focus on methods that will allow fertility restoration. This review discusses different studies that have been conducted on ITT transplantation, including those using growth factor supplementation like free molecules, or tissue encapsulation with or without nanoparticles, as well as the possibility of developing a bioartificial testis that can be used for in vitro gamete production or in vivo transplantation.
authors.affiliation: Gynecology-Andrology Research Unit, Medical School, Institut de Recherche Expérimentale et Clinique, Université Catholique de Louvain, 1200, Brussels, Belgium.
authors.forename: Maxime
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Vermeulen
authors.affiliation: Gynecology-Andrology Research Unit, Medical School, Institut de Recherche Expérimentale et Clinique, Université Catholique de Louvain, 1200, Brussels, Belgium.|Department of Gynecology-Andrology, Université Catholique de Louvain, Cliniques Universitaires Saint-Luc, Avenue Hippocrate 10, 1200, Brussels, Belgium.
authors.forename: Jonathan
authors.initials: J
authors.lastname: Poels
authors.affiliation: Gynecology-Andrology Research Unit, Medical School, Institut de Recherche Expérimentale et Clinique, Université Catholique de Louvain, 1200, Brussels, Belgium.|Department of Gynecology-Andrology, Université Catholique de Louvain, Cliniques Universitaires Saint-Luc, Avenue Hippocrate 10, 1200, Brussels, Belgium.
authors.forename: Francesca
authors.initials: F
authors.lastname: de Michele
authors.affiliation: Advanced Drug Delivery and Biomaterials Unit, Louvain Drug Research Institute, Université Catholique de Louvain, 1200, Brussels, Belgium.|Institute of Condensed Matter and Nanosciences, Université Catholique de Louvain, 1348, Louvain-la-Neuve, Belgium.
authors.forename: Anne
authors.initials: A
authors.lastname: des Rieux
authors.affiliation: Gynecology-Andrology Research Unit, Medical School, Institut de Recherche Expérimentale et Clinique, Université Catholique de Louvain, 1200, Brussels, Belgium. christine.wyns@uclouvain.be.|Department of Gynecology-Andrology, Université Catholique de Louvain, Cliniques Universitaires Saint-Luc, Avenue Hippocrate 10, 1200, Brussels, Belgium. christine.wyns@uclouvain.be.
authors.forename: Christine
authors.initials: C
authors.lastname: Wyns
mesh_terms: D000818:Animals; D017690:Cell Transplantation / Q000295:instrumentation / Q000379:methods*; D018914:Cells, Immobilized / Q000637:transplantation*; D015925:Cryopreservation; D006801:Humans; D020100:Hydrogels / Q000627:therapeutic use*; D007248:Infertility, Male / Q000517:prevention & control*; D008297:Male; D036103:Nanotechnology / Q000379:methods*; D011627:Puberty; D013093:Spermatogonia / Q000637:transplantation*; D054457:Tissue Scaffolds
chemical_list: D020100:Hydrogels
keywords: Cryopreservation; Encapsulation; Extracellular matrix; Fertility preservation; Hydrogels; Testicular transplantation