0 likes, 0 comments - drhowardsmithreports on September 18, 2025: "Vibrating Human Eggs For IVF When a woman’s eggs are harvested from her ovaries in preparation for in-vitro fertilization (IVF) or intracytoplasmic sperm injection (ICSI), they are covered by so-called cumulus cells. These cells must be removed after IVF and before ICSI in order to obtain viable fertilized eggs for implantation. The traditional method for cumulus removal, CR, involves vortexing using manual pipetting. This process often damages some of the eggs, the oocytes. Enter biologists at Cornell University with a microfluidic chip through which eggs can pass and be cleansed of cumulus cells with vibration-induced flow. The chip has a spiral array of micro-pillars that separate the smaller cumulus cells from the larger oocytes and flush them out of the chip. Pre-clinical studies using a mouse model showed the process to be fast, efficient, and gentle for the eggs. As many as 23 oocytes were simultaneously cleaned successfully with the potential for fertilization and embryo initiation similar to those for manual pipette cleaning. Hopefully, after this method undergoes additional testing, it will be ready for the clinic……someday soon. https://pubs.rsc.org/en/content/articlepdf/2025/lc/d5lc00414d #oocytes #cumulus #ivf #icsi #microchip #cleansing".
Scientists examine how #friction forces propel #development in a marine organism.
https://phys.org/news/2024-01-scientists-friction-propel-marine.html
As the potter works the spinning wheel, the friction between their hands and the soft clay helps them shape it into all kinds of forms and creations. In a fascinating parallel, sea squirt oocytes (immature egg cells) harness friction within various compartments in their interior to undergo developmental changes after conception. A study from the Heisenberg group at the Institute of Science and Technology Austria (ISTA), published in Nature Physics, now describes how this works.
Referenced link: https://phys.org/news/2023-05-japanese-successfully-primate-oocytes-lab.html
Discuss on https://discu.eu/q/https://phys.org/news/2023-05-japanese-successfully-primate-oocytes-lab.html
Originally posted by Phys.org / @physorg_com: http://nitter.platypush.tech/physorg_com/status/1661757779227422722#m
Japanese researchers successfully induce primate #oocytes in the lab https://www.embopress.org/doi/10.15252/embj.2022112962 https://phys.org/news/2023-05-japanese-successfully-primate-oocytes-lab.html
The many types of cells in the human body are produced through the process of differentiation, in which stem cells are converted to more specialized types. Currently, it is challenging for researchers to control the differentiation of stem cells in the lab (in vitro). Of particular interest are oocytes, which are female germ cells that develop into eggs. Understanding their development could have far-ranging impacts, from infertility treatment to conservation of endangered species.
Scientific Frontline
Howard Smith MD, AM
CellBioNews
Phys.org
Anne Fausto Sterling
The EMBO Journal