The effect of kisspeptin on the maturation of human ovarian follicles in culture following vitrification-thawing processes.

OBJECTIVE: Ovarian cryopreservation is one of the effective methods to preserve fertility for cancer patients. Still, this approach has some problems, namely ROS, resulting in adverse effects on oocytes and ovarian follicles. Kisspeptin as an antioxidant to control ovarian function, directly or indirectly. In this study, the effect of kisspeptin on follicle maturation was evaluated in culture following ovarian cryopreservation. METHODS: Ovarian tissue samples of women between 20 and 35 years old (n=12) were laparoscopically collected. The samples were randomly divided into four groups: 1) control, 2) vitrification, 3) vitrified+1µM kisspeptin, and 4) vitrified+10µM kisspeptin. After vitrification and thawing processes, the tissues were cultured in DMEM medium for 7 days. H&E staining for histological evaluation, Real-Time PCR for GDF9 and BMP15 gene expression, and immunohistochemical staining for GDF9 and BMP15 protein expression were performed. RESULTS: In the vitrification group, ovarian tissue morphology was incoherent, and more primordial follicles than other follicle types were found. The expression of GDF9 and BMP15 genes and proteins were significantly decreased in this group compared with other groups (p<0.05). In the vitrification groups with kisspeptin (1 and 10 µM), the number of primary and secondary follicles was more than in the vitrification group. Besides, the expression of these genes and proteins was dramatically elevated in the vitrification groups with kisspeptin compared to the vitrification group alone (p<0.05). CONCLUSIONS: It seems that kisspeptin is an effective substance to improve the quality of the human ovarian cryopreservation medium by improving follicle maturation.