Obstetrics and Gynaecology
Permanent URI for this community
The Discipline of Obstetrics and Gynaecology is a leading centre for research in many aspects of reproduction. It has an international reputation in the areas of maternal-fetal physiology, circadian physiology, reproductive immunology, embryology, advanced reproductive technology and perinatology.
Browse
Browsing Obstetrics and Gynaecology by Issue Date
Now showing 1 - 20 of 3323
Results Per Page
Sort Options
Item Metadata only Tissue oxygenation and red cell 2,3-diphosphoglycerate in normal and abnormal pregnancy(Blackwell Science, 1976) MacLennan, A.H.; Emerson, P.M.; Hunter, D.J.S.; Darley, J.H.Maternal tissue oxygenation was reflected by the level of red cell, 2,3-diphosphoglycerate (DPG) was measured before, during and after normal pregnancy. Following an initial fall at the beginning of pregnancy there was a significant rise in the mean level of DPG during pregnancy with an abrupt fall in the puerperium. The mean red cell DPG level in the third trimester of pregnancies complicated by pre-eclampsia and diabetes was not statistically different from the normal but the mean value of all pregnancies in which the fetus was stillborn or growth retarded was significantly lower (p less than 0-001). The possible mechanism of the changes in normal and abnormal pregnancy is discussed and it is suggested that the measurement of red cell DPG in the third trimester of pregnancy may prove to be a useful parameter of placental oxygenation.Item Metadata only Goals and potential value of alternative teratogenicity tests(Karger, 1985) Kochhar, D.; Hickey, T.Item Metadata only Serum relaxin and pelvic pain of pregnancy(Elsevier Science, 1986) Maclennan, A.; Green, R.; Nicolson, R.; Bath, M.Serum relaxin immunoreactivity was measured by means of a porcine relaxin radioimmunoassay in 35 patients with severe pelvic pain and pelvic joint instability during late pregnancy. Results were compared with a control group of 368 samples obtained throughout pregnancy from normal singleton pregnancies. Most of the relaxin concentrations in the study group were above the 95% confidence limits of the median for the corresponding gestational age in the control group. The difference in relaxin levels between the study and control groups in the third trimester was highly significant. Relaxin levels in patients with pelvic pain were close to normal non-pregnant levels by the third postnatal day. The highest relaxin levels during pregnancy were found in the patients who were the most incapacitated clinically. The results suggest that there may be an association between high serum relaxin levels and pelvic pain and joint laxity during late pregnancy.Item Metadata only Serum relaxin in pregnancy(Elsevier Science, 1986) Maclennan, A.; Nicolson, R.; Green, R.Serum relaxin immunoactivity was measured by means of a porcine radioimmunoassay in a cross-sectional study of 302 normal singleton pregnancies. Concentrations in the third trimester were lower than in early and mid pregnancy. At term, relaxin levels in patients who went into spontaneous labour within a week of sampling were significantly lower than in those who did not. However, relaxin levels were highest during labour and fell almost to non-pregnant levels by the third postnatal day. Levels in twin pregnancies in the third trimester were higher than those in singleton pregnancies. Serial samples from 4 patients with a history of premature labour showed declining, very low levels in the only patient who subsequently had a preterm delivery. These results are compatible with the proposed roles of relaxin during pregnancy: namely, to maintain myometrial quiescence, facilitate uterine stromal remodelling during uterine growth, and promote cervical ripening at the onset of parturition.Item Metadata only Granulocyte macrophage colony stimulating factor (GM-CSF) in the murine reproductive tract: stimulation by seminal factors(CSIRO Publishing, 1990) Robertson, S.A.; Seamark, R.F.The activity of GM-CSF during early pregnancy in the murine uterine lumen in vivo and in media conditioned by uterine cells in vitro has been assessed. GM-CSF was detected in uterine luminal fluid recovered by lavage on the morning after syngeneic mating (median level 5.7 CFUc U/uterus) and following mating with vasectomized (5.1 U/uterus) or allogeneic males (4.4 U/uterus), with significantly lesser (P less than 0.05) amounts recovered from the uteri of superovulated, mated mice. By contrast, GM-CSF was only detectable (greater than 0.5 U/uterus) in the luminal fluid of three of 22 unmated oestrous mice examined. No activity was detected in secretions from male accessory glands including seminal vesicle, epididymis, prostate and coagulating gland (less than 0.5 U/gland). GM-CSF was found at higher levels in supernatants from cell monolayers prepared by tryptic digest of the uteri of Day 1 mated mice than those from unmated oestrous mice (P less than 0.05). Little GM-CSF was detected in supernatants from ovariectomized mice. An alpha-GM-CSF polyvalent antibody neutralized the FD5/12 bioassay response confirming the identity of the lymphokine. The interleukins IL-2 and IL-3 were not detected in uterine luminal fluid nor in media conditioned by cell monolayers. We postulate that elevated uterine GM-CSF activity after mating is elicited by a non-sperm associated, non-MHC component of the ejaculate and synthesized by a hormone-responsive endometrial cell population. This cytokine may have an embryotrophic role or contribute to priming of the uterus for implantation.Item Metadata only Lymphokines, including interleukin-2, alter gonadotropin-stimulated progesterone production and proliferation of human granulosa-luteal cells in vitro(Endocrine Society, 1991) Wang, L.; Robertson, S.A.; Seamark, R.F.; Norman, R.J.The effects of human interleukin-1 (IL-1) and IL-2 on human granulosa-luteal cell progesterone production were examined with or without hCG stimulation in vitro. Human granulosa-luteal cells were recovered from follicular fluid obtained from women undergoing in vitro fertilization procedures and cultured for up to 7 days before supernatant progesterone level measurement. Lymphokine-rich conditioned medium was prepared from mitogen-stimulated human peripheral blood leukocytes (HPL-CM). The influence of HPL-CM on both granulosa-luteal cell progesterone production and cell growth was inhibitory. In contrast, supernatants of the IL-2-producing cell line MLA-144 (MLA-CM) stimulated both basal progesterone secretion and cell proliferation. Human recombinant IL-2 (from 0.1-100 IU) alone did not change progesterone levels, compared to control values, after 24 h of cell culture. However, 1, 10, and 100 IU IL-2 significantly inhibited progesterone secretion from cells stimulated by 5 IU hCG (P less than 0.01). The enhanced progesterone levels stimulated by forskolin were also significantly inhibited by 10 IU IL-2 (P = 0.01). This effect was not mediated through decreased cAMP, since the forskolin-enhanced cAMP level was not influenced by IL-2, IL-1, with or without hCG, did not show any effect on progesterone production during either 24 or 48 h of cell culture. It is concluded that 1) human recombinant IL-2 significantly inhibits progesterone production stimulated by hCG in human granulosa-luteal cells; 2) IL-2 also had a marked inhibitory effect on forskolin-induced progesterone release, but did not influence the increased cAMP level stimulated by forskolin; 3) the inhibitory influence of IL-2 on progesterone synthesis may be down-stream in the signal transduction pathway from cAMP activation; and 4) HPL-CM and MLA-CM produced inhibitory and stimulatory effects, respectively, on both basal and hCG-stimulated progesterone levels as well as on granulosa-luteal cell proliferation. These activities cannot be completely attributed to IL-2, and other mediators of leukocyte origin may, therefore, exist.Item Metadata only Granulocyte-macrophage colony stimulating factor (GM-CSF): one of a family of epithelial cell-derived cytokines in the preimplantation uterus(CSIRO Publishing, 1992) Robertson, S.A.; Seamark, R.F.Granulocyte-macrophage colony stimulating factor (GM-CSF) is one of a number of lympho-haemapoietic cytokines, including CSF-1, interleukin-6 (IL-6) and leukaemia inhibitory factor (LIF) now known to be synthesized by epithelial cells in the murine uterus. GM-CSF synthesis is regulated primarily by the ovarian steroid hormone oestrogen, but is also subject to modulation by factors including a seminal component of seminal vesicle origin which stimulates a 20-fold increase in luminal fluid content at mating, and bacterial lipopolysaccharide (LPS) and the T-lymphocyte and natural killer (NK) cell product interferon-gamma (IFN gamma). In the non-pregnant mouse GM-CSF synthesis peaks at oestrus. Synthesis is maintained at comparable or moderately higher levels during the preimplantation period of pregnancy and in the non-decidualized endometrium during mid gestation. An embryotrophic activity is suggested by studies in vitro that indicate that GM-CSF stimulates attachment and outgrowth of blastocysts. It is postulated that GM-CSF is of major importance to the physiology of pregnancy through its role as a component of a local cytokine circuit acting to recruit and regulate function of endometrial leukocytes, and by its action as interlocutor and important effector arm in embryo-maternal interactions during gestation.Item Metadata only Uterine epithelial cells synthesize granulocyte-macrophage colony-stimulating factor and interleukin-6 in pregnant and nonpregnant mice(Society for the Study of Reproduction, 1992) Robertson, S.A.; Mayrhofer, G.; Seamark, R.F.Cytokine secretion by endometrial cells from estrous and mated mice was measured using specific bioassays. The granulocyte-macrophage colony-stimulating factor (GM-CSF) and interleukin-6 (IL-6) contents of uterine intraluminal fluid were elevated greater than 20-fold and 250-fold respectively following mating, and both cytokines were synthesized in abundance in vitro by uterine cells harvested at estrus and on Day 1 of pregnancy. Synthesis was not impaired in genetically lymphocyte-deficient nude, SCID, or beige mice. To determine the cellular origin of the cytokines, a panning technique employing monoclonal antibodies against a range of leukocyte and other lineage markers was used to isolate uterine cell subsets in vitro. These experiments identified glandular and/or luminal epithelial cells as the major source of GM-CSF and IL-6 in estrous and pregnant uteri. Stromal fibroblasts also synthesized IL-6, as did macrophages in mated mice. Epithelial cells harvested from midgestation uteri secreted GM-CSF and IL-6 in quantities similar to those of cells from estrous and mated mice. Bioactivities of both cytokines derived from epithelial cells were neutralized by specific antibodies, and size-exclusion chromatography of conditioned media from uterine cells revealed peaks of GM-CSF and IL-6 bioactivity with M(r) 23,000 and 23,000-26,000, respectively. Bioassay of luminal fluids and culture supernatants were negative for the cytokines interleukin-1, interleukin-2, interleukin-3, and tumor necrosis factor-alpha. These studies identify murine uterine epithelium as a potent source of the cytokines GM-CSF and IL-6, which we postulate have potentially important functions in pregnancy through actions on target cells in both the uterus and the conceptus.Item Metadata only Cytokines in rodent reproduction and the cytokine-endocrine interaction(Current Biology, 1992) Robertson, S.A.; Brannstrom, M.; Seamark, R.F.Insights derived from recent studies employing rodent models demonstrate that the synthesis of pluripotent cytokines is an important function of resident cells in the female reproductive tract. Through steroid hormone regulated secretion of these mediators, resident cells appear to coordinate the recruitment and action of leukocytes that are centrally implicated in the dramatic remodelling processes characteristic of reproductive events.Item Metadata only Localization of leukocyte subsets in the rat ovary during the periovulatory period(Society for the Study of Reproduction, 1993) Brannstrom, M.; Mayrhofer, G.; Robertson, S.A.The ovulatory process has been compared with inflammation because several classical inflammatory mediators appear to participate in this process. One component of the inflammatory reaction is the migration of leukocytes to the site of inflammation and the subsequent activation of these cells. We have reported recently that perfusion of leukocytes into the rat ovary in vitro enhances the number of LH-induced ovulations, which suggests an active role of leukocytes in ovulation. In the present study we characterize immunohistochemically the distribution of macrophages, T lymphocytes, and granulocytes in the ovaries of untreated immature rats and of eCG-hCG-primed rats killed prior to hCG injection, at ovulation, and at 33-36 h post-ovulation. Macrophages, identified with monoclonal antibodies ED1 and ED2, were the major leukocyte population and were found primarily in the medullary region surrounding the blood vessels. The density of the cells in this region increased continuously during development to sexual maturity and until after ovulation. Macrophages were also present in the thecal layer of the preovulatory follicles, and the numbers of these cells increased about 5-fold in this area in ovulating follicles (12 h after hCG) compared to preovulatory follicles (before hCG). A portion of macrophages in both areas expressed major histocompatibility complex (MHC) class II antigens (OX6+); these cells were present mostly in the medullary region, with no apparent change in density during the periovulatory period. Neutrophilic granulocytes comprised a lesser proportion of the total leukocyte population in the medullary region but were abundant in the thecal layer. The density of neutrophils increased 3-fold in the medullary region and 8-fold in the thecal region in ovulatory compared to preovulatory follicles. T lymphocytes (OX52+) were evenly distributed at relatively low density in the medulla and the stroma of the cortex. Most T lymphocytes expressed the CD8 antigen (OX8+) and hence were of the MHC class I-restricted phenotype. Few T lymphocytes were present in the thecal layer. In summary, macrophages, neutrophilic granulocytes, and T lymphocytes are present in the ovary at ovulation. There is a selective increase in the numbers of macrophages and neutrophilic granulocytes in the medullary region and in the thecal layer as the ovulatory period progresses, indicating that these cells may actively be involved in the tissue remodeling occurring at ovulation.Item Metadata only The trophoblast as an integral component of a macrophage-cytokine network(Nature Publishing Group, 1993) Guilbert, L.; Robertson, S.A.; Wegmann, T.G.The trophoblast, an epithelial cell of fetal origin that forms the physical barrier between the mother and developing conceptus, becomes a component of the host immune system during pregnancy. Of the classical immune cells, it most closely resembles the macrophage, also present in high numbers in the pregnant uterus. The macrophage and trophoblast, as cell classes, share characteristics such as phagocytosis, cyncytialization, invasiveness, expression of the proteins CD4, CD14, IgG receptor (FcR), non-specific esterase, granulocyte macrophage-CSF (GM-CSF), colony stimulating factor 1 (CSF-1), interleukin-1 (IL-1), interleukin-6 (IL-6), tumour necrosis factor (TNF-α), transforming growth factors (TGF), platelet-α derived growth factor (PDGF) and receptors for these cytokines. In the uterus both cell types appear regulated by a common element, the uterine epithelium, that secretes cytokines such as CSF-1, GM-CSF, TNFα, TGFβ, IL-6, and leukaemia inhibitory factor (LIF) that target both macrophages and trophoblasts. The common characteristics and regulation that make teleological sense in terms of co-ordinating local uterine immunity during pregnancy may also be important in transmission of congenital diseases such as AIDS. The production by the uterine epithelium of a number of cytokines previously only associated with mononuclear phagocyte production and function predicts the existence of a similar, but broader, shared cytokine network encompassing trophoblast and the principal immune regulatory cell, the T lymphocyte.Item Metadata only Leukocyte subpopulations in the rat corpus luteum during pregnancy and pseudopregnancy(Society for the Study of Reproduction, 1994) Brannstrom, M.; Giesecke, L.; Moore, I.C.; van den Heuvel, C.J.; Robertson, S.A.Leukocytes including monocyte/macrophages, granulocytes, and T lymphocytes were localized in the corpus luteum (CL) of pregnant and pseudopregnant rats using monoclonal antibodies reactive with lineage-specific antigens. Neutrophilic granulocytes and monocytes/macrophages were found to be the most abundant leukocyte populations in the CL during both pregnancy and pseudopregnancy. The density of neutrophilic granulocytes (MCA 149-reactive cells) increased approximately 2-fold after mating, to peak on Day 9 of pseudopregnancy (214 +/- 13 positive cells/0.125 mm2 grid area) and Day 10 of pregnancy (216 +/- 12/grid area), and then declined in later stages of CL life. In pregnant rats, monocytes/macrophages positive for the monoclonal antibody ED1 were most numerous during early CL life when they were approximately 6-fold more plentiful than at luteolysis (153 +/- 14/grid area at Day 5 vs. 25 +/- 2 at 2 days postpartum). In pseudopregnant rats, the density of ED1-positive cells declined approximately 5-fold during the life span of the CL (124 +/- 17/grid area at Day 2 vs. 20 +/- 2 at Day 13) prior to a second, somewhat lesser peak at luteal regression (84 +/- 12 at Day 15). Fewer monocyte/macrophages within the CL were found to express antigen reactive with the monoclonal antibody ED2, which is characteristically a marker for tissue-macrophages (7% of the density of ED1-positive cells at Day 5 in the pregnant group and 13% at Day 2 in the pseudopregnant group); and while there was an approximately 60% reduction in the number of ED2-positive cells during pregnancy, these cells were found not to fluctuate significantly in number over the course of CL life in pseudopregnant animals.In contrast, the number of major histocompatibility complex class II (OX6)-reactive cells increased approximately 4.5-fold and 2.5-fold in pseudopregnant and pregnant rats, respectively, suggesting that luteal regression is accompanied by enhanced macrophage activation. T lymphocytes (OX52- positive cells) were found to have a consistently sparse distribution within the CL (1% of the density of ED₁-positive cells at Day 5 in the pregnant group and 2% at Day 2 in the pseudopregnant group). These data indicate that leukocytes of the myeloid lineages comprise substantial and dynamic populations within the rat CL, and suggest that these cells may have roles both in regulating steroidogenesis and in the tissue remodeling that accompanies CL development and demise during pregnancy.Item Metadata only Rat ovary produces cytokines during ovulation(Society for the Study of Reproduction, 1994) Brannstrom, M.; Norman, R.J.; Seamark, R.F.; Robertson, S.A.To examine the production of cytokines by the ovary during ovulation, ovaries were obtained from immature rats and from eCG/hCG-primed immature rats at different stages of the ovulatory process (before hCG injection, 10 h after hCG, and 20 h after hCG) and were perfused in vitro for 5 h. Large quantities of interleukin (IL)-6 and granulocyte-macrophage colony-stimulating factor (GM-CSF) bioactivity and smaller amounts of tumor necrosis factor-alpha (TNF alpha) and IL-1 bioactivity were found in the perfusate. IL-2 and IL-3 were not detectable in the perfusion media. The GM-CSF content was significantly higher in the perfusate of ovulating ovaries (obtained 10 h after hCG) compared to the earlier stages. Studies on preovulatory ovaries (prior to hCG injection) revealed that GM-CSF release was not influenced by LH, but was markedly increased when recombinant human IL-1 beta (4 ng/ml) was added to the perfusion medium. IL-6 was released in similar amounts from ovaries at all stages. The identity of bioactive GM-CSF was confirmed by neutralization with a specific polyclonal antibody against murine GM-CSF. Size-exclusion chromatography of perfusion medium revealed peaks of GM-CSF and IL-6 bioactivity at approximate molecular masses of 21-23 kDa and 24-25 kDa, respectively. This study demonstrates that the rat ovary produces IL-6, GM-CSF, TNF alpha, and IL-1 prior to and during the ovulatory process and that there are temporal fluctuations in GM-CSF release with a peak in output at ovulation.Item Metadata only Subfertility(University Program, 1995) Kerin, John Francis Paul; School of Paediatrics and Reproductive Health : Obstetrics and GynaecologyItem Metadata only Immunoreactivity of placental villous components to MHC Class II antigens does not identify villitis of unknown aetiology(British Medical Association, 1995) Khong, Teck YeeItem Metadata only Differences in substrate metabolism between self-perceived 'large-eating' and 'small-eating' women(MacMillan Press, 1995) Clark, D.; Tomas, F.; Withers, R.; Brinkman, M.; Berry, M.; Oliver, J.; Owens, P.; Butler, R.; Ballard, F.; Nestel, P.OBJECTIVE: To compare different aspects of intermediary metabolism in self perceived 'small-eating' females and self-perceived near normal weight 'large-eating' females and relate the data to those reported for Pima Indians who have the world's highest prevalence of non-insulin dependent diabetes mellitus and obesity. DESIGN: Make repeat measurements of rates of oxygen consumption, carbon dioxide production and blood metabolites in 'large-' and 'small-eating' females at rest, during different activities and after ingestion of a standardised liquid meal. SUBJECTS: Nine self perceived, 'large-eating' females and nine self perceived 'small-eating' females. MEASUREMENTS: Resting metabolic rates (RMR), respiratory quotient (RQ) values and plasma insulin, glucagon insulin-like growth factor (IGF-1), dehydroepiandrosterone sulphate (DHEA-SO4) and glucose. RESULTS: RMR (adjusted for FFM) averaged 3891 +/- 93 J/min in the 'small-eaters' and 3375 +/- 107 J/min in the 'large-eaters' for ten consecutive measurements conducted at 30 min intervals during the control period for the measurement of the thermic effect of food. Over this period the average RQ for the 'small-eating' women (0.81) was significantly greater than that of the 'large-eating' women (0.78). The two groups responded similarly to an oral glucose tolerance test but the concentration of DHEA-SO4 in plasma was 35% higher in the 'small-eaters'. CONCLUSION: The 'small-eating' women may have a greater risk of weight gain but they counteract this tendency by maintaining high activity levels.Item Metadata only Are perinatal necropsy rates satisfactory? A study from an Australian maternity hospital(Australasian Medical Publishing Co., 1995) Khong, Teck Yee; Wan Mansor, F. A.; Staples, AlanItem Metadata only Luteinizing hormone/chorionic gonadotropin bioactivity in the common marmoset (Callithrix jacchus) is due to a chorionic gonadotropin molecule with a structure intermediate between human chorionic gonadotropin and human luteinizing hormone.(Society for the Study of Reproduction, 1995) Simula, A.; Amato, F.; Faast, R.; Lopata, A.; Berka, J.; Norman, R.Chorionic gonadotropin (CG), a pregnancy-specific heterodimeric hormone found in primates, is responsible for CL rescue with pregnancy maintenance. Of the primates, the human and baboon gene sequences are the only structures so far determined. In order to study the structure and function of CG in other primates, we have isolated and sequenced the coding regions for the two subunits of marmoset CG (mCG) by the reverse transcription/polymerase chain reaction method. Study of multiple clones confirmed a high degree of homology with the human sequences (88% and 80% for the alpha and beta nucleotide sequences, respectively). Marmoset CG alpha has an extra four amino acids compared to hCG alpha, whereas the mCG beta sequence has a 3-bp deletion that maintains the reading frame and C-terminal amino acid sequence. Most of the differences between hCG beta and mCG beta peptides occur in the C-terminal region, which includes the loss of two of the O-linked glycosylation consensus sequences and the presence of an N-linked glycosylation consensus sequence. When mCG alpha and beta were co-expressed in CHO cells, assembly of biologically active hormone was confirmed by induced steroid secretion by MA10 cells. Partially purified mCG beta was used to raise anti-mCG antibodies. To date, an antibody has been obtained that is capable of detecting recombinant mCG beta, recombinant mCG dimer, and mCG dimer secreted by cultured marmoset trophoblast. Marmoset CG alpha and beta were also detectable at the transcriptional level in cultured trophoblast by in situ hybridization. This suggests that the LH/CG bioactivity reported from marmoset placentae and embryos is due to a molecule with structural features common to hLH (glycosylation pattern) and hCG (CG beta C-terminal structure).Item Metadata only Assessment of fertilisation failure and abnormal fertilisation after intracytoplasmic sperm injection (ICSI)(CSIRO, 1995) Flaherty, Sean P.; Payne, Dianna; Swann, Nicholas J.; Matthews, Colin D.Item Metadata only Binding of phospho-relaxin and biotinylated relaxin to porcine and human reproductive tissues(Global Publications, 1995) Borthwick, A.; Borthwick, G.; MacLennan, A.; MacLennan, A.H.; Tregear, G.W.; BryantGreenwood, G.D.