The Ovary

Dr. Leung is a Professor at the University of British Columbia’s Department of Obstetrics & Gynecology and former Associate Dean in the Faculty of Medicine at UBC. Dr. Leung received his PhD from Western University. After post-doctoral training at the University of California at Los Angeles and the Laval University, he joined the University of British Columbia in 1982 as a faculty member. Dr. Leung has received a number of prestigious awards, including a Scholar Award and a Scientist Award from the Medical Research Council of Canada, a Distinguished Scholar Award from the Michael Smith Foundation for Health Research and a Senior Scientist Award from the BC Children Hospital Research Institute. Dr. Leung has served on many national and international organizations, including as President of the Canadian Fertility and Andrology Society, Director of the Society for the Study of Reproduction, Director of the Ovarian Workshops in the USA, temporary advisor to the World Health Organization, Fellow of the Canadian Academy for Health Sciences, and Fellow of the Royal Society of Canada. Dr. Leung’s research focuses on hormonal determinants of women’s reproductive health. His publication record to date includes 400 papers, 350 abstracts, 22 book chapters and 7 monographs. Since his appointment at UBC, Dr. Leung has served as the research supervisor for more than 100 graduate students, postdoctoral fellows and visiting scientists. Dr. Alan B. Adashi is a prominent academic physician-executive and former Dean of Medicine and Biological Sciences at Brown University during its 2007 renaming. He earned his medical degree from the Sackler School of Medicine in 1973, completed residency in Obstetrics and Gynecology at Tufts University, and fellowship training in Reproductive Endocrinology and reproductive biology at Johns Hopkins and UC San Diego. He holds an MS in Health Care Management from Harvard T.H. Chan School of Public Health. Dr. Adashi served on faculty at the University of Maryland, University of Utah—where he chaired Obstetrics and Gynecology and founded the Ovarian Cancer Program—and Brown University. He is a former president of the Society for Reproductive Endocrinologists, Society for Gynecologic Investigation, and American Gynecological and Obstetrical Society. With nearly 400 publications and over 50 mentored postdoctoral trainees, his work has been widely recognized and featured in major media outlets.

• Part I. The Ovarian Follicular Apparatus: Operational Characteristics1. Follicle Selection in Mammalian Ovaries2. Regulation of follicle formation and development by ovarian signaling pathway3. Human Folliculogenesis Revisited:  The Menstrual Cycle Visualized by Ultrasonography4. Development of the Mammalian Ovary and Follicles5. Organization of Ovarian Steroidogenic Cells and Cholesterol Metabolism 6. Inhibin, Activin and Follistatin in Ovarian Physiology7. Cell-cell Interactions in the Ovarian Follicles: Role of TGF-beta Superfamily Members8. Mutations and Polymorphisms, and their Functional Consequences, in Gonadotropin and Gonadotropin Receptor Genes 9. Environmentally Induced Epigenetic Transgenerational Inheritance of Ovarian DiseasePart II. Oocyte Maturation and Ovulation10. Mammalian Oogenesis – the fragile foundation of the next generation11. Regulation of Mammalian Oocyte Maturation12. Oocyte Meiotic Maturation13. Gene Expression During Oogenesis and Oocyte DevelopmentPart III. The Corpus Luteum15. Molecular Regulation of Progesterone Production in Corpus Luteum16. Corpus Luteum Formation 17. Luteolysis and The Corpus Luteum of PregnancyPart IV. Novel Experimental Models18. Transgenic Mouse Models in the Study of Ovarian Function 19. Genome-Wide Association Studies of Ovarian Function Disorders20. Mitchondria Research in Human Reproduction 21. The Role of Mitochondria in Reproductive Function and Assisted Reproduction Part V. Human Ovarian Pathophysiology: Select Aspects22. Ovarian Hyperstimulation Syndrome23. The Role of GnRH Agonist Triggering in GnRH Antagonist-Based Ovarian Stimulation Protocols24. The Ovarian Factor in Assisted Reproductive Technology25. The Role of Antimullerian Hormone in Assisted Reproduction 26. Polycystic Ovary Syndrome27. Genetic and Environmental Factors in the Aetiology of Polycystic Ovary Syndrome28. Germ Cell Failure and Ovarian Resistance: Human Genes and Disorders 29. Environmental Contaminants and Ovarian Toxicity 30. Autologous Transplantation of Human Ovarian Tissue 31. Oncofertility: Preservation of ovarian function after a cancer diagnosisPart VI. Human Ovarian Cancer32. Ovarian cancers: their varied origins and pathologically implicated microenvironment33. Phenotypic Plasticity and the Origins and Progression of Ovarian Cancer 34. Novel Therapeutic Approaches and Targets for Ovarian Cancer35. Molecular and Cellular Basis of Chemoresistance in Ovarian Cancer