ART and the Human Blastocyst

I. Gamete Quality and Pregnancy Outcome.- 1. The Impact of High-Order Multiple Pregnancies.- 2. Patient Stimulation and Effect on Outcomes.- 3. New Developments in Imaging and Hormonal Stimulation of the Ovaries.- 4. Paternal Effects on Fertilization, Embryo Development, and Pregnancy Outcome.- II. Physiology of the Embryo.- 5. The Cell Biology of Preimplantation Development.- 6. Metabolism of the Early Embryo: Energy Production and Utilization.- 7. Blastomere Homeostasis.- 8. Cell Junctions and Cell Interactions in Animal and Human Blastocyst Development.- III. Blastocyst Development in Culture.- 9. Blastocyst Development in Culture: The Role of Macromolecules.- 10. Culture Systems and Blastocyst Development.- 11. Apoptosis in the Human Blastocyst: Role of Survival Factors.- 12. Predictors of Viability of the Human Blastocyst.- IV. Blastocyst Transfer and Fate.- 13. Which Patients Should Have Blastocyst Transfer?.- 14. Embryo Transfer and Luteal Phase Support.- 15. Cryopreservation of Blastocysts.- V. Implantation.- 16. Embryo-Maternal Dialogue in the Apposition and Adhesion Phases of Human Implantation.- 17. Biomarkers and the Assessment of Uterine Receptivity.- 18. Endometrial Pinopodes: Relevance for Human Blastocyst Implantation.- 19. The Future: Toward Single Embryo Transfer.- 20. The Niche of the Blastocyst in Human ART.- Author Index.