Oocyte cryopreservation and ovarian tissue banking.

Oocyte cryopreservation, despite its impact on conservation of genetic resources, is not yet an established technology. Several problems need to be solved before this technology can be applied regularly. Chilling membrane susceptibility and formation of ice due to the large volume of the cell are the major problems observed. However, during the last years, several studies were done to obtain viable oocytes after cryopreservation. The addition of molecules known to stabilize membranes and the creation of freezing systems with rapid cooling throughout the transition phase have yielded a good percentage of viable immature and mature oocytes More recently, storage of female gametes was achieved by cryopreservation of cortical ovarian tissue. The possibility of restoring fertility by transplantation of frozen ovarian tissue or its long-term culture in vitro represents an important future means of preserving the fertility of patients and of storing the gametes of rare animals.