Lynda Kay McGinnis, PhD

Areas of interest
• Effects of the microenvironment and chemotherapy treatments on oocyte health and future embryo developmental potential
• Oocyte maturation and preimplantation embryo development
• Fertilization and cell signaling

Oocyte and embryo health are the primary focus of my research. Our previous research lead to the development of KSOMaa (trade name “Global”), a liquid culture media that provides nutritional support for preimplantation embryos growing in vitro and is now used worldwide in clinical embryology labs treating patients for infertility. We work directly with the clinicians and fellows in the Division of Reproductive Endocrinology and Infertility, and the USC Fertility Clinic on studies designed to understand the causes of infertility, reduced oocyte quality, and poor embryo survival. Identifying the underlying causes of these conditions will enable the development of new treatments that will improve pregnancy rates and the birth of healthy children.

Current research studies ongoing in my laboratory:
1. “The effects of long-term cancer treatments on reproductive outlook for cancer survivors”: Some cancer survivors must continue taking therapeutic doses of chemotherapy drugs for many years. For young women of reproductive age, there is concern regarding the effects of these treatments on their chances to have children in the future. We are currently studying the ovarian response and oocyte quality following long-term treatments with Gleevec (Imatinib) or Tamoxifen.
2. “Exosome / microvesicle regulation of oocyte developmental competence”: Extracellular vesicles (exosomes and microvesicles) are tiny (50-200um) vesicles that are released by cells to send messages and signals to neighboring cells. The fluid that surrounds a growing oocyte contains thousands of vesicles carrying messages between cells of the ovary and the growing oocyte. Our research is aimed to determine the function of these vesicles and if they can be used as markers indicating oocyte health or tools to improve fertilization and embryo development.

• Total and bioavailable 25-hydroxyvitamin D is not associated with improved sexual dysfunction following vitamin D supplementation in women with polycystic ovarian syndrome: a pilot study J Sex Med. 2024 Feb 27; 21(3):240-247. . View in PubMed
• Consistency of endometrial receptivity array and histologic dating of spatially distinct endometrial samplings: a prospective, blinded study F S Rep. 2023 Dec; 4(4):375-379. . View in PubMed
• Anti-Müllerian hormone levels are associated with skeletal maturity in adolescent girls in the Fels Longitudinal Study Res Sq. 2023 Sep 29. . View in PubMed
• Embryo morphology and live birth in the United States F S Rep. 2022 Jun; 3(2):131-137. . View in PubMed
• Effect of trophectoderm biopsy for PGT-A on live birth rate per embryo in good prognosis patients Arch Gynecol Obstet. 2022 10; 306(4):1321-1327. . View in PubMed
• Examining pre-term birth and cesarean section rates in gestational carrier pregnancies J Assist Reprod Genet. 2021 Oct; 38(10):2707-2712. . View in PubMed
• Effect of age and morphology on sustained implantation rate after euploid blastocyst transfer Reprod Biomed Online. 2021 Sep; 43(3):395-403. . View in PubMed
• Developmental potential of immature human oocytes aspirated after controlled ovarian stimulation J Assist Reprod Genet. 2021 Sep; 38(9):2291-2299. . View in PubMed
• J Assist Reprod Genet. 2021 Aug; 38(8):2151-2156. . View in PubMed
• Longitudinal antimüllerian hormone and its correlation with pubertal milestones F S Rep. 2021 Jun; 2(2):238-244. . View in PubMed
• Association of bioavailable inhibin B and oocyte yield in controlled ovarian stimulation F S Rep. 2021 Jun; 2(2):189-194. . View in PubMed
• Influence of Trophectoderm Biopsy Prior to Frozen Blastocyst Transfer on Obstetrical Outcomes Reprod Sci. 2021 12; 28(12):3459-3465. . View in PubMed
• Effect of Age and Morphology on Live Birth Rate After Cleavage Stage Embryo Transfer Reprod Sci. 2021 01; 28(1):43-51. . View in PubMed
• Arch Gynecol Obstet. 2021 01; 303(1):249-258. . View in PubMed
• A View from the past into our collective future: the oncofertility consortium vision statement J Assist Reprod Genet. 2021 Jan; 38(1):3-15. . View in PubMed
• A validated model for predicting live birth after embryo transfer Sci Rep. 2021 05 24; 11(1):10800. . View in PubMed
• Long-term imatinib diminishes ovarian reserve and impacts embryo quality J Assist Reprod Genet. 2020 Jun; 37(6):1459-1466. . View in PubMed
• Klotho: spinning up some new hype for decreased ovarian reserve research? Fertil Steril. 2020 12; 114(6):1174.. View in PubMed
• Autoimmune Regulator is required in female mice for optimal embryonic development and implantation† Biol Reprod. 2019 06 01; 100(6):1492-1504. . View in PubMed
• Imatinib treatments have long-term impact on placentation and embryo survival Sci Rep. 2019 02 22; 9(1):2535. . View in PubMed
• Micro-RNAs involved in cellular proliferation have altered expression profiles in granulosa of young women with diminished ovarian reserve J Assist Reprod Genet. 2018 Oct; 35(10):1777-1786. . View in PubMed
• Blastulation timing is associated with differential mitochondrial content in euploid embryos J Assist Reprod Genet. 2018 Apr; 35(4):711-720. . View in PubMed
• Pushing the limits of detection: investigation of cell-free DNA for aneuploidy screening in embryosFertil Steril. 2018 08; 110(3):467-475. e2. . View in PubMed
• Minimal information for studies of extracellular vesicles 2018 (MISEV2018): a position statement of the International Society for Extracellular Vesicles and update of the MISEV2014 guidelines J Extracell Vesicles. 2018; 7(1):1535750. . View in PubMed
• The role of angiogenic markers in adverse perinatal outcomes: fresh versus frozen embryo transfers J Assist Reprod Genet. 2017 Dec; 34(12):1639-1643. . View in PubMed
• Stage-specific follicular extracellular vesicle uptake and regulation of bovine granulosa cell proliferation Biol Reprod. 2017 Oct 01; 97(4):644-655. . View in PubMed
• Perinatal outcomes after natural conception versus in vitro fertilization (IVF) in gestational surrogates: a model to evaluate IVF treatment versus maternal effects Fertil Steril. 2017 12; 108(6):993-998. . View in PubMed
• Sperm-oocyte contact induces outside-in signaling via PYK2 activation Dev Biol. 2017 08 01; 428(1):52-62. . View in PubMed
• Extracellular Vesicles from Bovine Follicular Fluid Support Cumulus Expansion Biol Reprod. 2015 Nov; 93(5):117. . View in PubMed
• MicroRNA in Ovarian Biology and Disease Cold Spring Harb Perspect Med. 2015 May 18; 5(9):a022962. . View in PubMed
• Role of focal adhesion kinase in oocyte-follicle communication Mol Reprod Dev. 2015 Feb; 82(2):90-102. . View in PubMed
• Ovarian autoimmune disease: clinical concepts and animal models Cell Mol Immunol. 2014 Nov; 11(6):510-21. . View in PubMed
• Post-ovulatory aging of oocytes disrupts kinase signaling pathways and lysosome biogenesis Mol Reprod Dev. 2014 Oct; 81(10):928-45. . View in PubMed
• PTK2b function during fertilization of the mouse oocyte Biochem Biophys Res Commun. 2014 Aug 01; 450(3):1212-7. . View in PubMed
• A catalyst for change in reproductive science: John DBiggers as a mentor’s mentor. J Assist Reprod Genet. 2013 Aug; 30(8):979-94. . View in PubMed
• Protein tyrosine kinase signaling in the mouse oocyte cortex during sperm-egg interactions and anaphase resumption Mol Reprod Dev. 2013 Apr; 80(4):260-72. . View in PubMed
• Signaling modalities during oogenesis in mammals Curr Top Dev Biol. 2013; 102:227-42. . View in PubMed
• The autoimmune regulator prevents premature reproductive senescence in female mice Biol Reprod. 2012 Apr; 86(4):110. . View in PubMed
• Protein tyrosine kinase signaling during oocyte maturation and fertilization Mol Reprod Dev. 2011 Oct-Nov; 78(10-11):831-45. . View in PubMed
• Fer tyrosine kinase is required for germinal vesicle breakdown and meiosis-I in mouse oocytes Mol Reprod Dev. 2011 Jan; 78(1):33-47. . View in PubMed
• Mammalian oocytes are targets for prostaglandin E2 (PGE2) action Reprod Biol Endocrinol. 2010 Nov 01; 8:131. . View in PubMed
• Dynamics of protein phosphorylation during meiotic maturation J Assist Reprod Genet. 2010 Apr; 27(4):169-82. . View in PubMed
• Role of Fyn kinase in oocyte developmental potential Reprod Fertil Dev. 2010; 22(6):966-76. . View in PubMed
• Fyn kinase activity is required for normal organization and functional polarity of the mouse oocyte cortex Mol Reprod Dev. 2009 Sep; 76(9):819-31. . View in PubMed
• Further optimization of mouse spermatozoa evaporative drying techniques Cryobiology. 2009 Aug; 59(1):113-5. . View in PubMed
• Multiple mechanisms of germ cell loss in the perinatal mouse ovary Reproduction. 2009 Apr; 137(4):709-20. . View in PubMed
• Functions of Fyn kinase in the completion of meiosis in mouse oocytes Dev Biol. 2009 Mar 15; 327(2):280-7. . View in PubMed
• Dicer1 is essential for female fertility and normal development of the female reproductive system Endocrinology. 2008 Dec; 149(12):6207-12. . View in PubMed
• Oogenesis: Prospects and challenges for the future J Cell Physiol. 2008 Aug; 216(2):355-65. . View in PubMed
• Localized activation of Src-family protein kinases in the mouse egg Dev Biol. 2007 Jun 01; 306(1):241-54. . View in PubMed
• Long-term storage of mouse spermatozoa after evaporative drying Reproduction. 2007 May; 133(5):919-29. . View in PubMed
• One-step versus two-step culture of mouse preimplantation embryos: is there a difference? Hum Reprod. 2005 Dec; 20(12):3376-84.. View in PubMed
• Mouse sperm desiccated and stored in trehalose medium without freezing Biol Reprod. 2005 Oct; 73(4):627-33. . View in PubMed
• Mouse embryo development following IVF in media containing either L-glutamine or glycyl-L-glutamine Hum Reprod. 2005 May; 20(5):1364-71. . View in PubMed
• Discrepancies between the effects of glutamine in cultures of preimplantation mouse embryos Reprod Biomed Online. 2004 Jul; 9(1):70-3. . View in PubMed
• Enhanced effect of glycyl-L-glutamine on mouse preimplantation embryos in vitro Reprod Biomed Online. 2004 Jul; 9(1):59-69. . View in PubMed
• Intracytoplasmic sperm injection (ICSI) enables rescue of valuable mutant mouse strains Comp Med. 2003 Jun; 53(3):265-9. . View in PubMed
• Desiccation tolerance of spermatozoa dried at ambient temperature: production of fetal mice Biol Reprod. 2003 May; 68(5):1779-86. . View in PubMed
• Evidence that glucose is not always an inhibitor of mouse preimplantation development in vitro Hum Reprod. 2001 Jan; 16(1):153-163. . View in PubMed
• IVF of mouse ova in a simplex optimized medium supplemented with amino acids Hum Reprod. 2000 Aug; 15(8):1791-801. . View in PubMed
• Amino acids and preimplantation development of the mouse in protein-free potassium simplex optimized medium Biol Reprod. 2000 Jul; 63(1):281-93. . View in PubMed
• Targeted disruption of mouse Yin Yang 1 transcription factor results in peri-implantation lethality Mol Cell Biol. 1999 Oct; 19(10):7237-44. . View in PubMed
• Coordinate action of Wt1 and a modifier gene supports embryonic survival in the oviduct Mol Reprod Dev. 1999 Apr; 52(4):366-75. . View in PubMed
• Polyvinyl alcohol and amino acids as substitutes for bovine serum albumin in culture media for mouse preimplantation embryos Hum Reprod Update. 1997 Mar-Apr; 3(2):125-35. . View in PubMed
• Cyclin D2 is an FSH-responsive gene involved in gonadal cell proliferation and oncogenesis Nature. 1996 Dec 05; 384(6608):470-4. . View in PubMed
• Chromatin organization, meiotic status and meiotic competence acquisition in mouse oocytes from cultured ovarian follicles J Reprod Fertil. 1995 Jul; 104(2):277-84. . View in PubMed
• Investigations into the control of litter size in swine: IComparative studies on in vitro development of Meishan and Yorkshire preimplantation embryos. J Anim Sci. 1993 Jun; 71(6):1561-5. . View in PubMed
• In vitro development of ovine embryos in CZB medium Theriogenology. 1992 Mar; 37(3):559-69. . View in PubMed
• Failure of embryo transfer to transmit BLV in a dairy herd Vet Rec. 1990 Nov 03; 127(18):456. . View in PubMed

• Paulson, Richard
• Quinn, Molly