Fertility preservation is offered to patients facing fertility-threatening treatments, such as radiotherapy and chemotherapy for cancer. Within this context, oocytes or/and ovarian tissue are frozen for future use. In this research project, it is determined, both in mice and humans, whether it is possible to develop functional and quantitative oocytes from ovarian tissue in vitro, starting from immature follicles. Furthermore, immature oocytes collected during the process of ovarian tissue cryopreservation, are analyzed, following in vitro maturation, for their competency to serve as functional gametes.

We perform a number of quality tests on the in vitro matured oocytes, including calcium imaging, spindle staining, intracytoplasmic sperm injection (ICSI) followed by embryo development and chromosomal analysis of the subsequent embryos. Furthermore, we are investigating the use of nuclear transfer technology, to overcome poor embryonic development in this group of oocytes. For this purpose, donor oocytes are used as cytoplasmic recipients of the genetic material of in vitro matured oocytes.