1998/03/01 by Mohamad Rashid, Simon Fishel, Simon Thornton +4 · 1 citation
Medicine · #Sperm and Testicular Function #Reproductive Biology and Fertility #Ovarian function and disorders #Human fertilization #Insemination #In vitro fertilisation #Andrology #Hamster #Sperm #Acrosome reaction #Semen #Sperm washing #Biology #Predictive value #Medicine #Embryo #Endocrinology #Internal medicine #Anatomy
paper · pdf · doi:10.1093/humrep/13.3.624
openalex publication_date 1998/03/01 · openalex created_date 2025/10/10 · openalex updated_date 2026/06/15
The aim of the study was to evaluate the predictive value of the zona-free hamster egg penetration test (ZHEPT) for success in in-vitro fertilization (IVF) at various insemination concentrations ranging between 0.1 and >0.6 x 10(6)/ml. The ZHEPT was assessed using sperm samples from 87 couples undergoing IVF treatment. A similar test was simultaneously performed on the same semen sample following ionophore induction of the acrosome reaction (ZHEPTii test). Both the tests were poorly correlated with the fertilization rate of IVF at all the insemination concentrations except at >0.6 x 10(6)/ml, when there was good correlation between the ZHEPTii test and the fertilization rate. Following exclusion of two cases with an oocyte problem, further statistical analysis revealed that both the ZHEPT and ZHEPTii tests were poorly correlated with fertilization rate in IVF in this treatment group. This study suggests that the ZHEPT (with and without ionophore induction of the acrosome reaction) has a poor predictive value for the success of fertilization in IVF treatment at any insemination concentration.