Artificial human ovary a way for fertility preservation

Many of fertility preservation procedures such as hormone reinstatement methods and ovarian transplantation are not practicable for young women undergoing chemotherapy treatments for cancer, poor responder patients and women with premature ovarian failure who have diminished ovarian reserve. To return fertility in these patients, new procedures such as artificial human ovary technology should be offered to obtain mature and high-quality oocytes for in vitro fertilization via an ex vivo multistep sequential strategy including (1) culture of human cortical ovarian tissue pieces to increase primordial follicle growth,(2) isolation and encapsulation of growing ovarian follicles within a biodegradable three‐dimensional micro-environment made of matrigel, alginate, fibrin or other biomaterials, (3) isolation and culture of immature oocytes on purpose to develop mature oocytes. Also, 3D printed ovary is a novel experimental technology of an artificial ovary in which isolated ovarian follicles are embedded in 3D printed microporous hydrogel scaffolds to permit further follicular growth after transplantation in vivo. We suggested 3D printed ovary open a new horizon to preserve fertility in patients. It is hoped that by doing studies on 3D printed, retransplantation of in vitro grown ovarian follicles could be useful for patients in the future.

Keywords:

artificial human ovary , 3D printed ovary , fertility preservation , ovarian follicles