Effect of single versus grouped culture of human cumulus-oocyte complexes in PCOS women treated with biphasic in vitro maturation: A sibling oocyte pilot study.

Purpose: This study investigated the differences in the maturation rate of single versus grouped cumulus-oocyte complexes (COCs) culture methods for capacitation in vitro maturation (CAPA-IVM) in women with polycystic ovary syndrome (PCOS).
Methods: This study was performed at My Duc Phu Nhuan Hospital, Vietnam from October 1, 2020 to October 24, 2021. Women aged 18-37 years with a diagnosis of PCOS were recruited. COCs from each woman were randomly divided into two groups: single or grouped culture during CAPA-IVM culture. The primary outcome was the maturation rate.
Results: A total of 322 COCs from 15 eligible women included were randomly assigned to the two study groups. The maturation rate was comparable between the single and grouped culture groups (61.3% vs. 64.8%; p  = 0.56). There were no significant differences in the number of 2-pronuclei fertilized oocytes, number of day-3 embryos, and number of good-quality embryos in the two culture method groups. In the single culture group, COCs morphology was associated with the day-3 embryo formation rate but not the maturation rate.
Conclusions: Comparable oocyte maturation and embryology outcomes between single and grouped COCs culture utilizing sibling COCs derived from women with PCOS suggest the feasibility of both methods for CAPA-IVM culture.
Competing Interests: LNV has received speaker and conference fees from Merck; and grant, speaker, and conference fees from Merck Sharpe & Dohme and Ferring. TMH has received speaker fees from Merck, Merck Sharp & Dohme, and Ferring. JS reports lecture fees from Ferring Pharmaceuticals, BioMerieux, Besins Female Healthcare and Merck, grants from Fund for Research Flanders (FWO), and is a co‐inventor on granted patents on CAPA‐IVM methodology in the USA (US10392601B2) and Europe (EP3234112B1). JS is currently Corporate Science Officer (CSO) of Lavima Inc, a spinoff company of the Free University Brussels (VUB) that aims to commercialize in vitro maturation media for oocytes. Other authors have no financial relationships with any organizations that might have an interest in the submitted work in the previous 3 years and no other relationships or activities that could appear to have influenced the submitted work.
(© 2024 The Author(s). Reproductive Medicine and Biology published by John Wiley & Sons Australia, Ltd on behalf of Japan Society for Reproductive Medicine.)