Should we isolate human preantral follicles before or after cryopreservation of ovarian tissue?

Objective: To evaluate the survival and growth potential of human preantral follicles isolated before and after cryopreservation. Design: Pilot study. Setting: Gynecology research unit in a university hospital. Patient(s): Six women aged 27 to 32 years. Intervention(s): Six ovarian biopsy samples were cut into two equal parts, half subjected to slow-freezing followed by follicle isolation (cryo-iso group) and alginate-matrigel embedding, and half immediately processed for follicle isolation and alginate-matrigel embedding followed by slow-freezing (iso-cryo group) or used as fresh controls (fresh group). Main Outcome Measure(s): Follicle number, viability, diameter, and morphology. Result(s): After 1,134 preantral follicles had been isolated from fresh biopsy samples and 1,132 from frozen specimens, the three groups were compared before and after 7 days of in vitro culture (IVC) in alginate-matrigel beads. No statistically significant differences in viability were found between the three groups before or after IVC, but follicle diameter increased in all three groups after IVC. Morphology analysis revealed well-preserved follicles in both the iso-cryo and cryo-iso groups after IVC. Conclusion(s): Human preantral follicles can be successfully cryopreserved before or after isolation without impairing their ability to survive and grow in vitro. This could lead to development of new protocols for follicle cryopreservation, IVC, and grafting in clinical and research settings for fertility preservation. (Fertil Steril (R) 2013;99:1363-8. (C) 2013 by American Society for Reproductive Medicine.)