CRi's human-egg evaluation instrument aids breakthrough IVF discovery
Cambridge Research & Instrumentation, Inc. (CRi, Woburn, MA) says that its Oosight non-invasive optical imaging system, has been used in a groundbreaking study that investigated ways to select in vitro fertilized eggs most likely to produce a pregnancy. Oosight is widely used by embryologists as an aid for in vitro fertilization (IVF), CRi says.
Dr. Suha Kilani, senior scientist at IVF Australia in Sydney, led a group which included researchers from the School of Women's & Children's Health at the University of New South Wales. The group determined that while absolute predictive criteria for the selection of the best embryo for single-embryo transfer remain elusive, CRi's Oosight instrument provides a useful, non-invasive means to accurately measure characteristics of the egg to help identify the most viable embryo even before fertilization occurs. The results are the first to show a direct link between egg spindle characteristics and pregnancy.
"Extrapolation of these results would suggest that when a normal spindle is found, the chances of a pregnancy, if a high quality cleavage stage embryo follows, is greater than 65%," commented Dr. Kilani.
"This study adds to our knowledge of contributing factors to fertility and also validates the importance of good quantitative data as produced with the Oosight system. Such data are imperative if we are to make single-embryo transfer a reality, thereby greatly reducing the risks associated with multiple births," said Cathy Boutin, Product Manager at CRi.
CRi's Oosight systems based upon the company's original LC-PolScope technology can be seen at the European Society for Human Reproduction and Embryology conference in Amsterdam June 28 to July 2 in the Research Instrument's booth (number 95).
Oosight systems produce non-invasive, high-contrast images of the meiotic spindle and zona pellucida without the need for potentially harmful dyes or stains. In addition, these images contain quantitative data that indicate the relative order of structures within the spindle and zona. In this study, spindle density was significantly higher in those oocytes resulting in pregnancy.
The work by Dr. Kilani's group is described in a paper, Are there non-invasive markers in human oocytes that can predict pregnancy outcome?" appearing in the May 2009 issue of Reproductive BioMedicine Online.
Barbara Gefvert | Editor-in-Chief, BioOptics World (2008-2020)
Barbara G. Gefvert has been a science and technology editor and writer since 1987, and served as editor in chief on multiple publications, including Sensors magazine for nearly a decade.