Childless couples denied as anonymity loss Jun 27, 2008
Pip Morris, of the National Gamete Donation Trust, said: We ve never had enough donors ... Pip Morris cites a lack of awareness for the fall in gamete donor numbers ... Those most directly affected by gamete donation are the children. (Times Online)
First Sex Chromosome Gene Involved In Meiosis And Male Infertility Identified Mar 20, 2008
Meiosis is the process of cell division that produces gametes in both sexes ... Meiosis allows the exchange of genetic material between paternal and maternal genomes to produce genetically diverse gametes (sperm or eggs) ... The team genetically engineered male mice such that they lacked TEX11 function and found that this caused chromosomal asynapsis during the process of gamete formation. (Science Daily)
Inherited Individual Variations Influence Patterns Of Gene Shuffling Feb 5, 2008
Chromosomes from the mother (not including the X chromosome) averaged around 40 recombination events per gamete. Those from the father had only 26. (Science Daily)
Controlling Malaria Through Better Knowledge Of Genetics Of Plasmodium Populations Nov 9, 2007
They then migrate into its digestive tube where they give rise to male and female gametes ... (3) Self-fertilization, or selfing, results from the fusion of a female gamete and a male gamete originating from one and the same parasite genotype and therefore from the same individual. (Science Daily)
How to get a little extra on the side Aug 11, 2007
Babies Sperm donation is something that most hard-up male students consider at some point during university - but sadly, "the days of getting paid 15 for a wank are over", according to an admirably frank spokeswoman at the National Gamete Donation Trust. Donations are now exactly that: a free donation. (Guardian Unlimited)
PERSONAL PERSPECTIVE Jun 25, 2007
" If you work for temporary agencies, any sort of service industry, construction, or the media (old and new), start practicing. FICO -- A snappy little word that will come to dominate every aspect of your life. It will be the source of constant humiliation or constant joy. Check it early, check it often. Juvederm -- This one's mostly for the female graduates. It's unfortunate that despite the wonderful things we would rather believe about our fellow human beings and ourselves -- the kinds of... (San Francisco Chronicle -- Opinion)
New clinic puts women's eggs on layaway May 18, 2007
The clinic claims to be the first in Canada to provide long-term gamete storage to young men and women who are fertile but not ready to be parents - a business plan that has already seen success in the United States and Britain. But the relationship between private practitioners and new medical technologies such as egg freezing raises important ethical concerns, says Arthur Schafer, director of the Centre for Professional and Applied Ethics at the University of Manitoba. (Globe and Mail)
Men still donating sperm May 5, 2007
A spokeswoman for the National Gamete Donation Trust (NGDT) said that part of the reason for the decline was the decision by many clinics to stop recruitment amid uncertainty over the future of the system while the changes were being discussed. HFEA chair Shirley Harrison said: "Many commentators continue to claim that the change in the law to remove anonymity for sperm and egg donors would lead to an immediate and steep fall in the number of donors. "These new figures show that the predicted... (Manchester Evening News)
UK sperm donor numbers rise May 4, 2007
The British Fertility Society (BFS) , the National Gamete Donation Trust (NGDT) and other organisations have been looking at ways to improve the numbers of sperm donors recruited in the UK.. Ms Harrison said: "These figures show that these efforts have been paying off.". (BBC News -- Health)
Number of sperm donors rises despite the loss of anonymity May 4, 2007
A spokeswoman for the National Gamete Donation Trust (NGDT) said that part of the reason for the decline was the decision by many clinics to stop recruitment amid uncertainty over the future of the system while the changes were being discussed. The new statistics were published three months after the anonymity rules were extended to include overseas sperm donors, to whom British clinics had turned for supplies. (Independent)
Internet sperm agencies plan to sidestep new rules Apr 30, 2007
Loophole for non-frozen gametes to be closed We won't change, says boss of unlicensed firm ... Shortly afterwards, a single white female opened her door to a courier and took the package, which - if the origin of the gametes is anything to go by - could eventually lead to the birth of someone who enjoys golf and scuba diving ... Laura Witjens, chair of the National Gamete Donation Trust, claims that internet fresh sperm companies are "preying on the vulnerable" and should be banned. (Guardian Unlimited -- UK)
our special feature Apr 24, 2007
It is an organism that is in a different biological category that mere tissue, gamete or somatic cell. Discrimination against these youngest members of our human community based on what she or he looks like, their ability to reproduce asexually (what some call 'twinning'), level of cell differentiation, etc. (The Scientist)
Mother donates eggs to infertile daughter Apr 18, 2007
In this case its a gamete, Ms. Boivin said yesterday ... When it comes to donor gametes, it is irrelevant who donates the eggs, Mr. Sumner said. (National Post)
German Researchers Make Stem Cells into Proto-Sperm Apr 16, 2007
The research was published yesterday, Friday, April 13th, in the academic journal 'Reproduction: Gamete Biology. The team, led by Dr. Karim Nayernia at the University of Gottingenin Germany, reported they extracted the bone marrow stem cells from four adult men who were about to undergo bone marrow transplants, a common treatment for cancer. (Playfuls.com)
Early-stage sperm cells created from bone marrow: study Apr 16, 2007
The research, published in the journal Reproduction: Gamete Biology, could one day help in fertility treatment for men, Nayernia contends. And if female bone marrow is also able to produce sperm cells, it raises the possibility that women would be able to pass on their genetic material through manufactured sperm. (CBC.ca)
Researchers turn stem cells into sperm Apr 15, 2007
The research published in the Reproduction: Gamete Biology was carried out by a team of scientists led by Professor Karim Nayernia when he was at the University of Gottingen, Medical News Today reported. The findings will help researchers understand more about how sperm cells are created, the report said. (Monsters and Critics.com)
Scientists create synthetic sperm cells Apr 14, 2007
Writing in the journal Reproduction: Gamete Biology, Nayernia and colleagues said they searched out stem cells that most closely resembled germ cells the cells found in the testes of men and ovaries of women that eventually give rise to sperm and eggs. Here we show that a small population of bone marrow cells is able to transdifferentiate to male germ cell-like cells, Nayernias team wrote. (MSNBC -- Health)
Human Sperm Could One Day Be Made From Bone Marrow Apr 14, 2007
Reproduction: Gamete Biology ... The study is being published in the journal Reproduction: Gamete Biology ... Sperms and eggs are known as gametes, because they only have 23 chromosomes, whereas the fertilized egg is a zygote, because it is a viable future organism with all its requisite chromosomes present and correct. (Medical News Today)
Sperm made from bone marrow Apr 13, 2007
The findings were presented at an international fertility conference and are published in Gamete Biology: Emerging Frontiers on Fertility and Contraceptive Development. VIDEO AND AUDIO NEWS. (BBC News -- Science)
The prospect of all-female conception Apr 13, 2007
The latest findings, published in the journal Reproduction: Gamete Biology, show that male bone marrow can be used to make the early "spermatagonial" stem cells that normally mature into fully developed sperm cells ... A White Paper on genetics suggested that artificial gametes produced from the ordinary "somatic" tissue of the body may be banned from being used to fertilise human eggs by in vitro fertilisation. (Independent)
Scientists in sperm cell breakthrough Apr 13, 2007
ttingen, Germany, is published in the journal Reproduction: Gamete Biology. The research with mice sperm produced from stem cells, though, shows how much the technique would need to be refined before it could be applied to humans. (Guardian Unlimited)
Infertile men could become fathers Apr 13, 2007
Scientists have taken an important step towards creating artificial sperm that will allow infertile men to father their own genetic children. Primitive human sperm created from bone marrow tissue provided by male volunteers offer new evidence that it should be possible to grow working reproductive cells for men who make none of their own. (Times Online)
Women to self-create Apr 13, 2007
The research published in the journal Reproduction: Gamete Biology could also provide a valuable insight into male infertility, a condition traditionally hard to study. For instance, it could lead to a 'miracle pill' to boost fertility. (Daily Telegraph)
Manipulating Nature: Scientists Query Wildlife Birth-control Method Feb 13, 2007
Professor Cooper also raises concerns that individuals that survive the vaccine may be more likely to carry infectious diseases with the potential to affect other animals. An immuno-contraceptive vaccine causes an animal's immune system to produce antibodies that act against some essential event or structure in the reproductive process. (Science Daily)
Young Single Men Are More Likely To Bank Sperm Before Testicular Cancer Treatment Jan 10, 2007
A quarter of men with testicular cancer banked their sperm before treatment, but only six per cent of those actually used the sperm to father a child, according to a study published in the January issue of the urology journal BJU International. Researchers from the Vanderbilt University Medical Centre in Nashville, USA, surveyed 129 males treated at the institution over a ten-year period. (Science Daily)
Who's your daddy? Jan 7, 2007
In 2003, at least 15,000 in vitro fertilization procedures — in which the gametes, a woman's eggs and a man's sperm, are united in a petri dish and the resulting embryos are transferred into a uterus — were performed with donated eggs; that number grows by 20% annually ... "Let's face it: Donor gametes is an experiment," one fertility doctor aptly put it ... Is gamete donation like adoption. (Fresno Bee -- Opinion)
New Clues To How Sex Evolves Dec 5, 2006
But how did sex itself evolve" Researchers at the Department of Energy's Lawrence Berkeley National Laboratory and the University of California at Berkeley have found clues to one part of this complex question in ongoing studies of the nematode Caenorhabditis elegans. The millimeter-long, transparent nematode C. elegans (left) is ideal for observing the development of sex cells inside the worms's two large gonads (partial view, center). Antibodies label zinc-finger proteins in Pairing Centers... (Science Daily)
Sperm Proteome Gives 'Tantalizing Glimpse' Towards The Origin Of Sex Nov 14, 2006
The first ever catalogue of the different types of proteins found in sperm could help reveal the origins of sex and explain some of the mysteries of infertility, say scientists. Drosophila sperm inside egg. (Science Daily)
Britain's sperm crisis: call up our boys Nov 5, 2006
The National Gamete Donation Trust, a government-funded body that helps recruit donors, said it was looking at targeting places where "men congregate", including rugby matches and army bases. The Department of Health has also recently received a proposal from Fertility4Life, the biggest online sperm bank, to launch a recruitment drive among the military. (Independent)
'Eggs for sale'A 25-year-old woman's advert to clear her debts Nov 1, 2006
Laura Witzens is a spokeswoman for the National Gamete Donation Trust. She thinks more women should be willing to donate eggs altruistically. (BBC News -- Health)
Pay egg donors, say fertility specialists Oct 27, 2006
Pippa Morris, the donor recruitment manager at the National Gamete Donation Trust, said: "There is a shortage of both egg and sperm donors. The average wait across the country is two years. We know there are recipients for whom time is running out, who might be aged 42 and just diagnosed and have been told time is not on their side, who go abroad to get around the wait for donor eggs.". Under HFEA rules, egg donors in Britain are entitled to compensation of up to 250 for lost earnings, plus... (Yahoo News -- Fertility & Pregnancy)
- Jeremy Rifkin: The crop revolution that may succeed where GM failed Oct 26, 2006
Using MAS, researchers can upgrade classical breeding, and cut by 50% or more the time needed to develop new plant varieties by pinpointing appropriate plant partners at the gamete or seedling stage. Using MAS, researchers in the Netherlands have developed a new lettuce variety resistant to an aphid that causes reduced and abnormal growth. (Guardian Unlimited)
Designer Genes Oct 4, 2006
From there, the egg enters one of two fallopian tubes and waits for the male gamete to reach its destination. During intercourse, a man releases semen at the base of a woman's uterus, which (and we know we sound like a '60s health-doc when we say this) begins the sperm's long journey. (San Antonio Current, TX)
ABCB6 Is Key To Production Of Heme In Hemoglobin Sep 29, 2006
Investigators at St. Jude Children's Research Hospital have discovered that a protein called ABCB6 plays a central role in production of a molecule that is key to the ability of red blood cells to carry oxygen, of liver cells to break down toxins, and of cells to extract energy from nutrients. The St. Jude investigators showed that ABCB6 is lodged within the outer membrane of the cell's energy powerhouse called the mitochondria; and that it ferries into mitochondria a type of molecule called a... (Science Daily)
Competing interests in sperm donor secrecy Sep 23, 2006
The Government decision to end gamete and embryo donor anonymity was influenced by a recognition that the only ethical form of donor conception was non-anonymous donation. The full extent of the donor crisis in the UK has yet to be fully assessed and we should be wary of attributing the cause to the change in legislation. (TimesOnline)
Single molecular 'mark' seen as pivotal for genome compaction in spores and sperm Sep 16, 2006
PHILADELPHIA In higher order animals, genetic information is passed from parents to offspring via sperm or eggs, also known as gametes ... In both reproductive strategies, major physical changes occur in the genetic material after it has been duplicated and then halved on the way to the production of mature gametes or spores ... Researchers at The Wistar Institute, studying the mechanisms that control how the genetic material is managed during gamete production, have now identified a single... (EurekAlert!)
Releasing donors' names causes sperm bank crisis Sep 14, 2006
Mark Hamilton, chairman of the British Fertility Society, said: The British Fertility Society is well aware of the difficulties many patients throughout the country are experiencing in accessing gamete donation services, in particular donor insemination treatment. Provision of such services requires significant resources to attract, recruit, screen, and counsel prospective donors. (Times Online)
- William Leith: Will stem cell research make men redundant? Aug 3, 2006
These early forms of life were not divided into males and females; they did not have male and female reproductive cells (or gametes). They just had plain gametes ... In his classic book, The Selfish Gene, Richard Dawkins tells us about the process that turned equal-opportunity gametes into male and female sex cells. (Guardian Unlimited)
Sperm Created In The Laboratory From Embryonic Stem Cells Produce Viable Progeny Jul 12, 2006
Previous studies have shown that ES cells grown in the laboratory can differentiate into primordial germ cells that then give rise to cells resembling mature egg and sperm cells, known as gametes. However, the functionality of the gametes has not been thoroughly tested and many questions about the viability of these cells remain unanswered ... spermatozoa), and more commonly known as a sperm cell, is the haploid cell that is the male gamete. (Science Daily)
Children, parents have a balst at Community Day and Bike Derby May 12, 2006
Vendors ran the gamete from local artwork to jewelry to dolls and health and fitness. Freedom Valley Girl Scout volunteer Jackie Smith promoted girl scouting giving parents a program sample through the girls' badge books in both the brownie and junior scouting. (Coatesville Ledger, PA)
In defence of dumb-ass Tom May 11, 2006
I mean, sure, he's had a dumb-ass love life, leaving Mimi Rogers for a younger Nicole Kidman, whom he left for a younger Penelope Cruz, whom he left for a younger Katie Holmes, whom he ll probably leave for a pretty little ovarian gamete. But I ask you, WHO AMONG US HAS NOT HAD A DUMB-ASS LOVE LIFE. (The Age, Australia -- Breaking News)
What Controls Stickiness Of 'Smart' Chromosomal Glue May 10, 2006
-- Fertilisation or fertilization (also known as conception, fecundation and syngamy) is fusion of gametes to form a new organism of the same ... spermatozoa), and more commonly known as a sperm cell, is the haploid cell that is the male gamete. (Science Daily)
Sperm-producing Stem Cells Found In Testicles Could Be Extracted, Grown In The Lab, And Frozen For Future Use Apr 26, 2006
spermatozoa), and more commonly known as a sperm cell, is the haploid cell that is the male gamete. It joins an ovum to form a zygote. (Science Daily)
The donor business: The price of eggs Mar 26, 2006
"Clinics who send women overseas for egg implantation are acting against the spirit of the law in the UK," says Olivia Montuschi of the Donor Conception Network, which represents families with children conceived through gamete donation ... This point is more of an issue since a change in UK legislation last year removed the right to anonymity from donors of eggs and sperm and gave people conceived through donated gametes the right to know the identity of their biological parent ... Witjens, now... (Independent)
