LEARNING OUTCOMES
The students at the end of the lesson will be familiar with the:
• male and female reproduction system (anatomy and physiology),
• Male and female pathological conditions that force couples to assisted reproduction,
• the legal framework of assisted reproduction in Greece and abroad,
• ethical issues raised by assisted reproduction in Greece and worldwide,
• standard assisted reproduction (IVF) technique and women hormonal stimulation,
• insemination technique,
• Preimplantation Genetic Diagnosis,
• cryopreservation of human gametes and embryos,
• general sperm analysis,
• extinguished sperm tests.
SYLLABUS
Theoretical lessons:
1. The male reproductive system. Common diseases and reproductive problems. Male sexuality, pathological conditions and their treatment, male contraception.
2. The female reproductive system. Common diseases and reproductive problems. Female sexuality, pathological conditions and their treatment, female contraception.
3. The human gametes. Clinical and laboratory tests for their quality control.
4. The physiology of reproductive hormones. The woman’s cycle and its disorders. The infertile man, diagnosis and clinical treatment (TESA, MESA, retrograde ejaculation).
5. The physiology of conception, pathological conditions and their clinical treatment. The physical and technical abortion of the fetus. Causes of recurrent miscarriages.
6. Prenatal screening in women and men. The stages of a normal pregnancy, the development of the fetus. The birth.
7. The preparation of the woman for in vitro fertilization, the ‘’natural cycle’’, the hormonal stimulation of the ovaries. Counseling in assisted reproduction.
8. Sperm preparation techniques, artificial insemination.
9. The main stages of in vitro fertilization (IVF) (ovulation, sperm collection, technical fertilization, embryo selection, embryo transfer).
10. The basic laboratory techniques of in vitro fertilization. Laboratory equipment, materials and methods.
11. The preimplantation genetic diagnosis. The embryo transfer at the blastocyst stage and its advantages.
12. The cryopreservation of human gametes and embryos. Stem cell and umbilical cord blood banks.
13. The modern legal framework for assisted reproduction. Ethical dilemmas and the relevant public debate.
Laboratory lessons:
1. How to collect semen samples in a natural and surgical way. Determination of normal characteristics of the sperm. Automated sperm analyzers (CASA). The preparation of sperm smears in order to determine the vitality and morphology of spermatozoa.
2. Determination of sperm mobility according to WHO standards, the proper Internal quality control in order to check the repeatability of mobility’s measurements.
3. The assessment of the concentration and number of spermatozoa with the Neubauer hemocytometer according to WHO standards, the proper Internal quality control to check the repeatability of sperm concentration measurements.
4. The microscopy distinction of sperm aggregations and accumulations, the determination of IgG, IgA antisperm antibodies in semen samples, the preparation of Papanikolaou staining in laboratory.
5. The preparation of eosin – nigrosin staining in the laboratory, the assessment of sperm vitality.
6. The determination of the sperm morphology according to the WHO standards in stained semen smears by Papanikolaou staining, the proper internal quality control to check the repeatability of morphology measurements.
7. The determination of sperm morphology with Spermac Stain and pre-painted slides.
8. The assessment of round cells in sperm with the Neubauer hemocytometer, stained sperm samples by Papanikolaou staining and Vital Screen. 9. The technique of sperm purifying in order to be used in artificial insemination.
10. The osmotic test for the assessment of sperm vitality.
11. The assessment of defragmentation index (halo test).
12. Biochemical analysis in semen samples (determination of citric acid).
13. Biochemical analysis in semen samples (determination of fructose).
14. Practical assessment, written exams.