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Meiosis, Aneuploidy, and Maternal Aging

  • Chapter
Perimenopause

Part of the book series: Serono Symposia USA ((SERONOSYMP))

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Abstract

It is well recognized that reproductive failure in individuals who are past their prime reproductive years is often associated with an increased incidence of offspring suffering from the effects of nondisjunction (e.g., Down syndrome) or aneuploidy, and a generalized increase in spontaneous abortion (1–3). This is a significant public health issue because many women are currently attempting to reproduce when they are older and thus biologically less fertile (4–6). Since 1980 the first-birth rate for women aged 35 to 39 increased 81% in the United States (6). However, through the use of donor oocytes with in vitro fertilization it has become clear that the uterine environment in many older women is fully competent to carry a pregnancy (7). Frequently, however, they encounter reproductive failure that can be attributed to the quality of the oocyte as related to meiotic nondisjunction. Abnormal chromosome complements are often found in oocytes from aging oocyte donors including hyperhaploid and hypohaploid conditions (8). The possible causes of such failure are complex and related to both structural and genetic alterations in the egg that lead to abnormal meiosis and embryonic development.

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  1. David E. Battaglia
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Editors and Affiliations

  1. Department of Obstetrics and Gynecology College of Physicians and Surgeons, Columbia University, New York, NY, 10032, USA

    Rogerio A. Lobo M.D.

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Battaglia, D.E. (1997). Meiosis, Aneuploidy, and Maternal Aging. In: Lobo, R.A. (eds) Perimenopause. Serono Symposia USA. Springer, New York, NY. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-1-4612-2288-0_4

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  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/978-1-4612-2288-0_4

  • Publisher Name: Springer, New York, NY

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