Changes in macrophage colonystimulating factor concentration in serum and follicular fluid in in-vitro fertilization and embryo transfer cycles

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Objective: To evaluate the changes of macrophage colony-stimulating factor concentration in serum and compare macrophage colony-stimulating factor concentration in follicular fluid (FF) through IVF-ET cycles. Design: Sera and the matched FFs were collected serially through the IVF-ET cycles and analyzed retrospectively with respect to macrophage colony-stimulating factor concentration. Setting: Department of Obstetrics and Gynecology of Kumamoto University Hospital. Patient(s): Ninety-four women underwent 129 cycles of ovulation induction by using GnRH agonist (GnRHa)-hMG-hCG for IVF-ET program. Intervention(s): Serum and FF macrophage colony-stimulating factor concentrations were measured by ELISA. Main Outcome Measure(s): Concentrations of macrophage colony-stimulating factor in serum and FF. Result(s): Serum macrophage colony-stimulating factor concentration was gradually increased throughout ovarian stimulation, and reached a peak from the day of oocyte retrieval to 2 days after oocyte retrieval, whereas no significant change in macrophage colony-stimulating factor was observed in cases of poor ovarian response to hMG. The macrophage colony-stimulating factor concentration in follicles was significantly higher than that in sera on the day of oocyte retrieval, and the concentrations in follicles from which oocyte could be retrieved were significantly higher than those from which oocyte could not be retrieved. Conclusion(s): These results suggest that gonadotropins lead to an increase in ovarian macrophage colony-stimulating factor production, and that this macrophage colonystimulating factor production in response to hMG administration is lost in poor ovarian responders. Thus, macrophage colony-stimulating factor may play an important role in the process of follicular maturation and ovulation as an intraovarian regulator.