Assessment of follicular fluid paraoxonase activity with pregnancy outcomes in women undergoing IVF/ICSI

The search for a reliable marker to predict pregnancy success is not yet identified. This study aims to evaluate paraoxonase activities (PON1) in follicular fluid (FF) and their correlation with oocyte yield, fertilization, and clinical pregnancy (CP). Methods: The study included 99 women aged 22-37 years old who were undergoing IVF/ICSI, were divided into fertile, which represents the control group consisting of 25 participants, and the infertile group, which was subdivided into 21 patients with PCOS, 26 patients with a low level of AMH, as well as 27 patients with unknown cause of infertility. The FF Basal PON1, salt stimulated PON1, and arylesterase activities were measured using the spectrophotometry method. Results: The PON1 basal activity of the PCOS group was higher (P<0.05) when compared with the control and UI groups. The PON1 arylesterase activity of the PCOS group was higher (P<0.05) when compared with control, UI, and low AMH groups. Each group showed a difference (P<0.05)in the pregnancy success in PCOS, low AMH, and UI groups but not in the control group. Conclusion: An increase in FF antioxidants seems to be a negative fertilization indicator, which may represent an adverse ovarian condition that triggered anti-oxidant behavior.