Title from publisher's bibliographic system (viewed on 05 Oct 2015).

Insights into the amphibian egg to understand the mammalian oocyte / Kei Miyamoto and John B. Gurdon -- Ontogeny of the mammalian ovary / Anne Grete Byskov and Claus Yding Andersen -- Gene networks in oocyte meiosis / Swapna Mohan and Paula E. Cohen -- Follicle formation and oocyte death / Melissa E. Pepling -- The early stages of follicular growth / Alain Gougeon -- Follicle and oocyte developmental dynamics / Aaron J.W. Hsueh and Kazuhiro Kawamura -- Mouse models to identify genes throughout oogenesis / Jia Peng, Qinglei Li, and Martin M. Matzuk -- Structural basis for oocyte-granulosa cell interactions / Ursula Eichenlaub-Ritter and Carlos Plancha -- Differential gene expression mediated by oocyte-granulosa cell communication / Saiichi Furukawa and Koji Sugiura -- Hormones and growth factors in the regulation of oocyte maturation / Marco Conti -- Getting into and out of oocyte maturation / Hayden Homer -- Chromosome behavior and spindle formation in mammalian oocytes / Heide Schatten and Qing-Yuan Sun -- Transcription, accumulation, storage, recruitment, and degradation of maternal mRNA in mammalian oocytes / Santhi Potireddy, Dasari Amarnath, and Keith E. Latham -- Setting the stage for fertilization: transcriptome and maternal factors / Boram Kim and Scott A. Coonrod -- Egg activation: initiation and decoding of Ca² signaling / John Carroll and Karl Swann -- In vitro growth and differentiation of oocytes / Hang Yin and Roger Gosden -- Metabolism of the follicle and oocyte in vivo and in vitro / Helen M. Picton and Karen E. Hemmings -- Improving oocyte maturation in vitro / Jeremy G. Thompson and Robert B. Gilchrist -- Human genes modulating primordial germ cell and gamete formation / Valerie L. Baker, Ruth Lathi, and Renee A. Reijo Pera -- In vitro differentiation of germ cells from stem cells / Fumihiro Sugawa, Karin Hübner, and Hans R. Schöler -- Parthenogenesis and parthenogenetic stem cells / Tiziana A.L. Brevini and Fulvio Gandolfi -- Epigenetic consequences of somatic cell nuclear transfer and induced pluripotent stem cell reprogramming / Jose Cibelli, Victoria L. Mascetti, and Roger A. Pedersen -- Primate and human somatic cell nuclear transfer / Rita P. Cervera and Shoukhrat Mitalipov -- Gene expression in human oocytes / Gayle M. Jones and David S. Cram -- Omics as tools for oocyte selection / Marc-André Sirard and Isabelle Gilbert -- The legacy of mitochondrial DNA / Helen A.L. Tuppen, Mary Herbert, and Doug M. Turnbull -- Relative contribution of advanced age and reduced follicle pool size on reproductive success: the quantity-quality enigma / Frank Broekmans and Madeleine Dólleman -- Cellular origin of age-related aneuploidy in mammalian oocytes / Ursula Eichenlaub-Ritter and Roger Gosden -- Alterations in the gene expression of aneuploidy oocytes and associated cumulus cells / Dagan Wells -- Transgerational risks by exposure in utero / Miguel A. Velazquez and Tom P. Fleming -- Obesity and oocyte quality / Rebecca L. Robker and Robert J. Norman -- Safety of ovarian stimulation / Dominic Stoop, Ellen Anckaert, and Johan Smitz -- Oocyte epigenetics and the risks for imprinting disorders associated with assisted reproduction / Serge McGraw and Jacquetta M. Trasler -- Genetic basis for primary ovarian insufficiency / Luca Persani, Stephanie Sherman, and Lawrence Nelson -- Polar body screening for aneuploidy in human oocytes / Luca Gianaroli, M. Cristina Magli, and Anna P. Ferraretti -- Cryopreservation of oocytes / Alan Trounson and Laura Rienzi -- Transplantation of ovarian tissue or immature oocytes to preserve and restore fertility in humans / Sherman Silber, Natalie Barbey, and David Silber.

The human egg - the rarest and most rapidly aging cell in the body - is a topic of intense scientific study. Assisted reproduction clinics are constantly vying to improve success rates - choosing the best gametes is a key step in this process. This new edition of what one reviewer of the first edition described as 'possibly the definitive work on the oocyte' covers the development, biology and pathology of the oocyte, and technologies to manipulate, enhance and control fertility. These technologies are used to overcome infertility, avoid inherited diseases, and create genetically engineered embryos from stem cells and cloning. This progress would have been impossible without the myriad of scientific and technical developments covered in this book. The new edition is thoroughly updated and includes major new research on reprogramming, oocyte molecular development, cryopreservation and viability. We are in exciting times for the egg.