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.

In vitro fertilization has resulted in an estimated 4000-5000 births in the world. The procedure has been accepted in Europe, America and Australia and several hundred IVF clinics are operating successfully. The newer procedures of GIFf, embryo freezing and donor oocyte IVF have become established and are dealt with in several chapters. GIFf has become the procedure of choice for patients with infertility of unknown origin. Oocyte freezing represents an important new technology which is being developed. The routine IVF procedure has improved slightly; variation in results can be reduced by quality control of laboratory and clinical techniques. Male factor infertility has been dealt with by IVF in mild and moderate cases, but newer techniques will be required to deal with severe problems in the male. Most countries have accepted that the straightforward IVF pro cedure is ethical. Limitations concerning the use of donor oocytes and embryo experimentation exist in some religions and countries; legal control of the new reproductive technologies ranges from the passage of statutes to no control at all. Many countries are still considering the need for legislative control. The text endeavours to indicate new areas of importance and to guide those organizing services as to how to introduce newer technolo gies.