New technique takes guesswork out of IVF embryo selection
Researchers at the 成人大片 have successfully trialled a new technique that could aid the process of choosing the 鈥渂est鈥 embryo for implantation, helping to boost the chances of pregnancy success from the very first IVF cycle.
The research 鈥 published today in the journal 鈥 has used highly advanced digital imaging techniques and mathematical modelling to show differences in the viability of embryos, which are not otherwise seen by the human eye under a microscope.
鈥淚t鈥檚 fair to say that to date, strategies in IVF for picking the best embryo to transfer into the mother have been limited,鈥 says lead author Dr Hannah Brown, Postdoctoral Fellow with the 成人大片鈥檚 Robinson Research Institute.
鈥淭here may be a number of embryos that look almost identical, and it鈥檚 up to the embryologist to make a judgment call about which of them is best 鈥 that is, the most viable for a healthy pregnancy. That鈥檚 a very difficult decision to make based on the little evidence available,鈥 she says.
鈥淲e know that many women who go through IVF aren鈥檛 successful on the first cycle. This can be emotionally traumatising and often becomes a very costly exercise depending on how many IVF cycles they go through.
鈥淯sing our knowledge of what is occurring in the biology of the embryo, we decided to see if there鈥檚 more than meets the eye 鈥 the elements we can鈥檛 see that distinguish the most healthy embryos, with the best developmental potential,鈥 Dr Brown says.
The key elements Dr Brown and her colleagues have considered are the quality of the embryo鈥檚 metabolism and biomarkers for DNA damage that may have occurred during the embryo鈥檚 in vitro development.
With assistance from researchers in the Centre for Nanoscale BioPhotonics (an Australian Research Centre of Excellence, also based at the 成人大片), the team has trialled a sophisticated, digital imaging technique 鈥 currently used for diagnosing cancer cells in patients 鈥 and mathematical modelling to create a 鈥渢exture analysis鈥 of the differences from one embryo to the next.
鈥淭hese techniques provide a depth of analysis that is not otherwise discernible by the human eye. They鈥檙e intentionally non-invasive to avoid causing any potential damage to the embryo or its environment,鈥 Dr Brown says.
鈥淲e have been successful on two fronts: in determining important differences between what would appear on the surface to be almost identical embryos, and in selecting those embryos that have had the best chance of a successful pregnancy.
鈥淎s we report in this new paper, these trials were conducted with mouse embryos. This is very promising work, and we are hopeful that in the years to come such a technique could be applied to IVF procedures.
鈥淥ur ultimate aim is to make the process of IVF more successful for couples, and to help produce the healthiest pregnancy possible for the benefit of the whole family,鈥 she says.
This research has been funded by the National Health and Medical Research Council (NHMRC). []
Dr Hannah Brown discussing her work.
The full paper can be found at the journal鈥檚 website .