New Method Could Improve in Vitro Fertilization Outcomes

A noninvasive imaging approach for predicting which embryos will reach the blastocyst phase could be useful in assessing the potential of embryos during assisted reproduction, according to research published online Oct. 3 in Nature Biotechnology.

Connie C. Wong, Ph.D., of Stanford University in California, and colleagues discuss their experiments using 242 in vitro fertilization embryos cryopreserved 12 to 18 hours after fertilization at the two-pronucleate stage.

The researchers found that progression to the blastocyst stage can be predicted with more than 93 percent sensitivity and specificity by three noninvasive imaging parameters: first cytokinesis of zero to 33 minutes, time between first and second mitosis of 7.8 to 14.3 hours, and time between second and third mitosis of zero to 5.8 hours. Their work also suggested that the success or failure of embryo development is determined to a large degree before embryonic genome activation.

"Given that embryo developmental potential can be assessed with a combination of cytokinetic and mitotic parameters in the first two cleavage divisions, it may be feasible to translate these basic studies to clinical applications," the authors conclude. "A method to predict blastocyst formation at day two could improve in vitro fertilization outcomes by increasing pregnancy rates while reducing the risk of multiple gestations. This question will be evaluated in future clinical studies."

One author is now (though not at the time the research was completed) an employee of Auxogyn Inc., which has licensed intellectual property resulting from this research. Several authors own stock in Auxogyn.

Via : modernmedicine