Reproduction Abstracts

A significant proportion of IVF treatments are unsuccessful due to defects in implantation. The first stage of implantation is an attachment interaction between the trophectoderm (TE) of the blastocyst-stage embryo and the uterine luminal epithelium (LE). Endocrine signalling from the corpus luteum and paracrine signalling from uterine glands, uterine stroma and the embryo promotes LE receptivity. To investigate the LE–TE interaction we have developed an in vitro...

Implantation failure remains a bottleneck in assisted reproduction treatments (ARTs), as only ~25% of treatment cycles result in a live birth. During the early stages of implantation, endocrine and embryonic paracrine signals prime the receptivity of the uterine luminal epithelium (LE) before the trophectoderm (TE) of the blastocyst-stage embryo can mediate attachment and subsequently invade the uterine epithelium and stroma. We have developed an in vitro model using ...