Study Suggests Women May Be Able to Make More Eggs as They Age <\/p>\n
Feb. 26, 2012 -- Scientists say they have found a way to use ovarian stem cells to perhaps one day help infertile women get pregnant -- or add years to a woman\u2019s reproductive cycle. <\/p>\n
In a study published in Nature Medicine, researchers report finding egg-producing stem cells in human ovaries. They also report being able to make some of those ovarian stem cells grow into immature eggs that may someday be useful for reproduction. <\/p>\n
At this point, such \u201cseed\u201d eggs can\u2019t be fertilized by sperm. But if scientists are able to entice them to mature and can prove they can be fertilized and grow into embryos -- a feat that has been reported in mice -- it would overturn a long-held scientific belief that women can\u2019t make new eggs as they get older. <\/p>\n
\u201cWhat it does is really open a door into human reproduction that 10 years ago didn\u2019t even exist,\u201d says researcher Jonathan L. Tilly, PhD, director of the Vincent Center for Reproductive Biology at Massachusetts General Hospital, in Boston. <\/p>\n
Outside experts agree. They say the findings could have profound importance for reproductive medicine and aging, allowing doctors not only to restore a woman\u2019s fertility but also to potentially delay menopause. <\/p>\n
\u201cI think the significance of this work is like reporting that we found microorganisms on Mars,\u201d says Kutluk Oktay, MD, who directs the Division of Reproductive Medicine and the Institute for Fertility Preservation at New York Medical College in Valhalla, N.Y. <\/p>\n
Still, It\u2019s a Long Way to Mars <\/p>\n
\u201cIt\u2019s a proof of principle that they could do it,\u201d says David F. Albertini, PhD, director of the Center for Reproductive Sciences at the University of Kansas Medical Center in Kansas City, Kan. <\/p>\n
\u201cThe world wants to know today if we\u2019re ready to restore fertility in women, whether they\u2019ve aged or been treated for cancer or whatever,\u201d Albertini says, adding that he doesn\u2019t think that\u2019s on the horizon. \u201cThis is an extremely rare event, at best.\u201d <\/p>\n
The egg-generating stem cells the researchers were able to extract from ovaries were very rare. The researchers only came across one for every 10,000 or so ovarian cells that they counted. <\/p>\n
But when they took those cells and implanted them back into human ovarian tissue, they divided and essentially made young eggs. <\/p>\n
Tilly says his team stopped short of trying to make one of the eggs functional because \u201cfor a lot of reasons, as it should be,\u201d it is illegal in the U.S. to experimentally fertilize human eggs. <\/p>\n
\u201cWe think the evidence provided clearly indicates that this very unique, newly discovered pool of cells does exist in women,\u201d he says. <\/p>\n
A Lot of Potential <\/p>\n
\u201cIt\u2019s a really exciting result,\u201d says Evelyn Telfer, PhD, a cell biology expert at the University of Edinburgh in Scotland. <\/p>\n<\/p>\n
See the rest here: Study Suggests Women May Be Able to Make More Eggs as They Age Feb. 26, 2012 -- Scientists say they have found a way to use ovarian stem cells to perhaps one day help infertile women get pregnant -- or add years to a woman\u2019s reproductive cycle. Continue reading
\nFuture Fertility Fix? Egg-Producing Stem Cells Found in Human Ovaries<\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"