Morroniside is the main ingredient of Cornus officinalis and has a variety of biological activities including antioxidative effects. Ovarian granulosa cells (GCs) are responsible for regulating the development and atresia of follicles, which are susceptible to oxidative stress. In this study, we determined whether morroniside can inhibit the oxidative stress of GCs induced by hydrogen peroxide (H2O2), leading to improved oocyte quality. The oxidative damage and apoptosis of ovarian GCs cultured in vitro were induced by the addition of H2O2. After pretreatment with morroniside, the levels of ROS, MDA, and 8-OHdG in ovarian GCs were significantly decreased. Morroniside significantly upregulated p-Nrf2 and promoted the nuclear translocation of Nrf2, which transcriptionally activated antioxidant SOD and NQO1. In addition, morroniside significantly regulated the levels of apoptosis-related proteins Bax, Bcl-2, cleaved caspase-9, and cleaved caspase-3 via the p38 and JNK pathways. These results suggest that morroniside can reduce the oxidative damage and apoptosis of ovarian GCs induced by H2O2.

The effect of repeated multicycle gonadotropin-releasing hormone antagonist (GnRH-ant) protocols on oxidative stress (OS) in follicular fluid (FF) and ovarian granulosa cells (GCs) remains unclear. This study investigated the effects of repeated multicycle GnRH-ant protocols on OS markers of FF and ovarian GCs. A total of 145 patients were enrolled and divided into four groups: 1 cycle group ( n = 42), 2 cycles group ( n = 37), 3 cycles group ( n = 45), and 4–5 cycles group ( n = 21). The FF and ovarian GCs of the patients were collected on the day of last oocyte retrieval and the levels of 8-hydroxy-2-deoxyguanosine (8-OHdG), malondialdehyde (MDA), superoxide dismutase (SOD), catalase (CAT), and glutathione peroxidase (GSH-Px) were tested by ELISA. The results showed that the serum estradiol levels on hCG injection day in the 3 and 4–5 cycles were significantly ( P < 0.05) lower than in the 1 and 2 cycles. The number of retrieved oocytes (12.1 ± 3.3 in cycle 1, 11.7 ± 3.1 in cycle 2, 10.4 ± 2.4 in cycle 3, and 9.4 ± 2.4 in cycles 4–5), embryos with two pronuclei (7.6 ± 3.0 in cycle 1, 7.0 ± 2.5 in cycle 2, 6.2 ± 2.6 in cycle 3, and 5.5 ± 2.1 in cycles 4–5), and the rates of high-quality embryos (52.2% in cycle 1, 47.9% in cycle 2, 38.6% in cycle 3, and 36.5% in cycles 4–5), implantation (35.4% in cycle 1, 32.4% in cycle 2, 23.8% in cycle 3, and 22.9% in cycles 4–5) and clinical pregnancy (50.0% in cycle 1, 43.2% in cycle 2, 33.3% in cycle 3, and 23.8% in cycles 4–5) in cycles 3 and 4–5 were significantly ( P < 0.05) lower than those in cycles 1 and 2. Compared with 1 and 2 cycles, the 8-OHdG and SOD were significantly increased in the 3–5 cycles, while the CAT and GSH-Px levels were significantly decreased. Together, this study reveals repeated COS with the use of GnRH-ant protocols results in OS and changes the follicle microenvironment of FF and GCs, possibly leading to poor IVF outcomes in patients with 3–5 cycles of COS.

Background Morroniside is the main ingredient of Cornus officinalis, which has an antioxidant effect. Ovarian granulosa cells (GCs) are responsible for regulating the development and atresia of follicles, which are susceptible to oxidative stress. In this study, we investigated whether morroniside could inhibit oxidative stress of GCs induced by hydrogen peroxide (H2O2), thus leading to improve oocyte quality. Methods The study was divided into 5 groups: control group, H2O2 group, morroniside (5 µM) + H2O2, morroniside (10 µM) + H2O2, Morroniside (20 µM) + H2O2. Cell survival rate was determined by CCK-8, ROS fluorescence level was determined by DCFH-DA probe, MDA, 8-OHdG, T-AOC, SOD, NQO1 and caspase-3 were determined by ELISA, SOD, NQO1, Bax, Bcl-2, caspase-3, caspase-9, Nrf2 and MAPKs protein expression were determined by Western blot, and Nrf2 nuclear translocation level was determined by immunofluorescence method. SPSS21.0 was used for statistical data analysis. Results After pretreatment with morroniside, the levels of ROS, MDA and 8-OHdG in ovarian GCs were significantly decreased. Morroniside significantly upregulated the level of p-Nrf2 and promoted the nuclear translocation level of Nrf2, which transcriptionally activated antioxidase SOD and NQO1. In addition, the levels of apoptosis-related proteins Bax, Bcl-2, caspase-3 and caspase-9 were significantly regulated via p38 and JNK pathway by morroniside. Conclusions These results suggested that morroniside could reduce oxidative damage and apoptosis of ovarian GCs induced by H2O2 in multiple ways, which provided a new idea for clinical improvement of oxidative stress in female reproductive system.

不孕症发病率逐年升高且病因复杂,随着辅助生殖技术的不断发展,能很好地解决这一问题,但是在促排卵过程中,依旧存在着患者卵巢反应性低下、卵泡发育成熟障碍,使获得的卵母细胞数量少且质量不佳,而导致受精率和妊娠率降低,且容易产生卵巢过度刺激综合征等并发症.杜惠兰教授依据中医"肾藏精,主生殖、为先天之本","女子以肝为先天"等理论,临证以"肝肾并重,长排同调"为原则治疗排卵障碍性不孕症,疗效显著.

Bushen-Tiaojing-Fang (BSTJF) is commonly used to treat infertility. This study investigated the effects of BSTJF on the pregnancy outcomes of patients with repeated controlled ovarian stimulation (COS), on mitochondrial function, and on oxidative stress in ovarian granulosa cells (GCs) and follicular fluid (FF). The samples and clinical data of 97 patients, including 35 in the control group, 29 in the placebo group and 33 in the BSTJF group, were collected for this study. The mitochondrial ultrastructure, ATP content, mitochondrial DNA (mtDNA) number, 8-hydroxy-2-deoxyguanosine (8-OHdG), Mn-superoxide dismutase (Mn-SOD), glutathione peroxidase (GSH-Px) activity levels, and mRNA expression levels of Mn-SOD, GSH-Px, and nuclear factor erythroid-derived factor 2-related factor 2 (Nrf2) were analyzed. The high-grade embryo ( P < 0.001), implantation ( P = 0.033), and clinical pregnancy ( P = 0.031) rates, as well as the ATP content ( P = 0.014), mtDNA number ( P = 0.035), GSH-Px activity ( P = 0.004 in GCs and P = 0.008 in FF) and mRNA expression levels ( P = 0.019), were significantly lower in the placebo group than in the control group, whereas the 8-OHdG content was significantly ( P = 0.006 in FF) higher in the placebo group than in the control group. Compared with those in the placebo group, the high-grade embryo rate ( P = 0.007), antioxidant enzyme activity ( P = 0.037 and 0.036 in Mn-SOD; P = 0.047 and 0.030 in GSH-Px) and mRNA level ( P < 0.001 in Nrf2, P = 0.039 in Mn-SOD and P = 0.002 in GSH-Px) were significantly higher in the BSTJF group, as were changes in mitochondrial ultrastructure, ATP ( P = 0.040) and mtDNA number ( P = 0.013). In conclusion, BSTJF can improve oxidative stress in patients with repeated COS and pregnancy outcomes.

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