I was just listening to this interview with Longevity researcher Colleen Murphy at Princeton U., and she mentions some research she’s done on mitochondrial health as it relates to egg (oocyte) and fertility health. They’ve found (as have other labs) that the supplement Urolithin A seems to really help with egg quality, by boosting the mitochondrial health in the eggs.
If you’re interested in this topic, I recommend you listen to the podcast - queued up for this specific part of the discussion. Research below on this topic also (below the video):
Research on Urolithin A and oocyte Health
The research that Colleen Murphy’s lab did on this topic:
Hi all, new here and just read through this entire thread. Apologies if some of these questions have been discussed before.
I’m 33F and have recently found out that my fertility markers (AMH = 0.24ng/mL, AFC = 4) indicate diminished ovarian reserve. I’m now researching options to preserve what remaining fertility I do have.
It seems that mice model studies show that Rapa preserves ovarian reserve + improves egg quality. Amazing. I plan to start taking it now until I’m ready to TTC in a few years time.
However, I’m also considering pursuing egg freezing first, and wondering if I should wait to start Rapa until completing the egg retrieval cycles. The mouse studies showed that Rapa could impede follicular growth in the short term, but a human study showed women with endometriosis treated with Rapa for 3 months before undergoing IVF resulted in more eggs retrieved vs control.
Anyone have opinions or suggestions on how they might use (or not use) Rapa if they were pursuing egg retrieval?
Just a side-note to be aware of. Egg freezing is definitely an option, but some people think its a guaranteed pregnancy later, but the success goes down relatively quickly it seems:
Elective oocyte cryopreservation involves controlled ovarian stimulation with injection medication and ultrasound-guided egg retrieval. The retrieved eggs are then stored in the fertility clinic. The procedure is expensive, as total costs range from $9000 to $17,000 per cycle with an additional $300 to $500 annual storage fee.
However, freezing eggs does not guarantee future live birth. Research suggests that women under 35 with normal ovarian reserve have the highest chance of giving birth using frozen eggs.
An earlier study of 645 women who chose elective oocyte cryopreservation found that only 54 (8.4%) used their frozen eggs during the 18 years period. Among women who did, 17 (31.5%) achieved at least one live birth. The birth rates were the highest among women aged 35 and younger (63.6%), compared to those 36–39 years (42.3%) and women 40 years and older (17.6%).
Thanks for the reply - I’m definitely aware of the low incidences of live births from frozen eggs. It’s a tricky decision because if you choose not to, and later face infertility, you’re always going to wonder if you should have pursued it. It’s an industry built on fear. But most women that do freeze eggs never use them because they end up conceiving naturally when they’re ready.
It does seem like Rapa is a promising alternative.
Using this medicine while you are pregnant can harm your unborn baby. Use an effective form of birth control to keep from getting pregnant, and keep using it for at least 12 weeks after you stop taking sirolimus. (source).
This survey does not provide any warning signal that pregnancies fathered by male patients exposed to immunosuppressive agents, notably the debated MMF/MPA, have more complications than pregnancies in the general population. (Source)
And, a recent video from the researcher focused on this area:
Yousin Suh, who researches reproduction and genetics at Columbia University, describes research showing that the organ transplants and anticancer medication rapamycin may also be able to extend lifespan. Su and her team have commenced a clinical trial called VIBRANT, for Validating Benefits of Rapamycin for Reproductive Aging Treatment, to study whether rapamycin can slow the aging of human ovaries and delay the onset of menopause.
Thank you! Any thoughts on Methylene Blue in regards to conception/pregnancy - how far in advance to stop? Can’t find much info beyond that it’s shown to have a half-life of 5-6 hours (max 24 hrs)… BTW, back to fertility on Rapa, my N-of-1 definitely shows great improvements towards youthful cycles after year+ of 6mg/wk.
Thank you, all’s well so far, I was nervous re: abnormalities given mg crazy stack at the time but all looks good so far! Now I’m taking choline, fish oil, hyaluronic acid, prebiotics, and occasionally collagen powder on top of my prenatals.
Great! And I hear you… I’m v nervous too (in advance). Which powder is the cleanest? Dr Rhonda Patrick said she stayed away even from collagen during pregnancy to avoid any impurities.
I honestly didn’t go down the rabbit hole of researching the cleanest powder. Got the one with the best reviews but don’t take it daily because I don’t love the taste it creates with milk. I figure though there’s no point in getting anal retentive with every source of possible contamination. Sadly there’s guaranteed to be microplastics in the placenta and breast milk — what am I to do? There’s inadvertent exposure to things we don’t want happening all around us. I just try to eat well and I use a reverse osmosis water filter too and leave the rest to chance.
A new paper out of McGill University in Montreal (actually the university that led the expedition to Easter Island that discovered Rapamycin).
several unproven IVF ‘accessories’ have emerged including so-called ovarian rejuvenation which entails placing fresh autologous platelet-rich plasma (PRP) directly into ovarian tissue. Among cellular responses attributed to this intervention are reduced oxidative stress, slowed apoptosis and improved metabolism. Besides having an impact on the existing follicle pool, platelet growth factors might also facilitate de novo oocyte recruitment by specified gene upregulation targeting uncommitted ovarian stem cells.
this proposal is the first to discuss intraovarian platelet cytokines followed by low-dose, phased rapamycin. For refractory cases, this investigational, tailored approach could amplify or sustain ovarian capacity sufficient to permit retrieval of competent oocytes via distinct but complementary pathways—thus reducing dependency on oocyte donation.
Given that intraovarian injection of PLT growth factors can increase serum AMH (indicating expansion of the follicle/oocyte unit) [7,77] and mTOR inhibition has been suggested to boost ovarian reserve [78], a bespoke protocol incorporating both might provide a useful synergy.
Open Access Paper:
Related:
Rapamycin improves the quality and developmental competence of in vitro matured oocytes in aged mice and humans
After intracytoplasmic sperm injection (ICSI) and further culture of human oocytes, the high-quality embryo rate in the rapamycin group was significantly elevated. Overall, rapamycin improved IVM outcomes of oocytes from aged mice and older women. The specific mechanism of the positive effects of rapamycin on IVM outcomes might be reducing ROS levels, mitigating DNA damage, and promoting developmental potential.
In the study involving mice, they found that spermidine levels in aging ovaries decline, leading to lower egg quality. However, supplementing with spermidine in mice increased spermidine levels, improved egg growth and enhanced fertility.
A new story about the rapamycin / menopause study at Columbia University:
Williams is leading a study to understand the impact of slowing ovarian age on women’s health. The double-blind study looks at 100 women between 35 and 45 who have normal periods. (Double-blind means no one knows who receives the treatment and who receives the placebo.) Subjects are randomized to receive either rapamycin or a placebo. For three months, participants take a pill, and researchers will follow them for another nine months.
