Ashok Agarwal • Damayanthi Durairajanayagam
Gurpriya Virk • Stefan S. Du Plessis

2014

Assisted reproduction has become a very common treatment option for couples
dealing with infertility. Despite the successes of these in vitro technologies, it is
impossible to fully reproduce the in vivo environment. Not only are the gametes and
embryos exposed to unnatural conditions, but they are also manually manipulated.
All of these interventions can lead to the generation of excess reactive oxygen species.
Under such conditions, natural antioxidant defences cannot preclude these
pathological ROS levels.