New Pretreatment Technology for IVF
Pretreatment of IVF is an important part of assisted reproduction technology. Chromosome screening and gene testing of embryos can help couples with specific genetic diseases to screen out risk-free embryos and improve the success rate of IVF. With the continuous progress of science and technology, the new technologies involved in IVF pretreatment are also developing. Next, we will introduce in detail the new technologies of IVF pretreatment from aspects such as embryo chromosome screening, gene detection, preimplantation genomics and embryo fusion.
Embryonic Chromosome Screening
Embryo chromosome screening is one of the most commonly used technologies in IVF pretreatment. It mainly detects the number and structure of chromosomes of embryos to exclude abnormal embryos and improve the success rate of embryo transfer. Traditional embryo chromosome screening methods mainly rely on chromosome observation under microscope and cytogenetic analysis. However, this method has the problems of low accuracy and complex operation.
In recent years, with the continuous development of gene detection technology, some new embryo chromosome screening technologies have emerged. Among them, the most commonly used technology is non-invasive gene detection (PGT-A), which can analyze the number and structure of embryonic chromosomes through cell culture of embryos and detection of cytoplasm and extracellular vesicles. This technology has the advantages of high accuracy, low risk and simple operation, and has been widely used in many IVF clinics and medical research centers.
In addition, people are still exploring embryo chromosome screening technology based on artificial intelligence. Through deep learning and pattern recognition of a large number of embryo data, this technology can more accurately interpret embryo chromosome abnormalities and predict high-quality embryos.
Gene testing
Gene detection is another important technology in IVF pretreatment, which is mainly used to detect the genetic genes of embryos. With the continuous development of gene sequencing technology, gene detection has become more and more accurate and efficient.
A commonly used gene detection technique is the gene SCA technique for amyotrophic lateral sclerosis (ALS). The technology detects whether the embryo carries ALS gene mutation by amplifying and sequencing the DNA of embryonic cells. If it carries the mutation, the embryo will be excluded to avoid transferring the embryo carrying the ALS gene mutation to the mother.
In addition, the emerging single cell transcriptome technology also plays an important role in gene detection. By sequencing and analyzing the transcriptome of a single embryonic cell, the whole gene expression map of the embryo can be obtained, and then various gene mutations and abnormalities can be detected.
Preimplantation genomics
Preimplantation genomics is a new technology in IVF pretreatment. Its purpose is to assess the health status and development potential of embryos by comprehensively detecting the genome of embryos. This technology is usually carried out in scientific research institutions and some advanced IVF clinics.
Preimplantation genomics includes comprehensive analysis of DNA, RNA and protein of embryos. Through the detection of these molecular levels, important data such as genetic information, development status and functional characteristics of embryos can be obtained, providing a basis for screening the best embryos.
At present, preimplantation genomics technology is mainly used to screen disease genes and assess development potential. By detecting the embryo genome, we can identify the embryos carrying genetic disease genes and exclude their selection. In addition, preimplantation genomics can also predict the development potential of embryos and help couples select embryos with good development prospects.
Embryonic fusion
Embryo fusion is a new technology in the pretreatment of IVF. It combines two or more embryos into one embryo to improve the quality and fertility of transferred embryos.
Embryo fusion is usually performed by micromanipulation techniques, including the use of special microsyringes or nanoneedles. It can combine embryos with different genetic information or specific genes to increase the diversity and development potential of embryos.
Embryo fusion technology can not only improve the success rate of IVF, but also is expected to be used to treat some genetic diseases. At present, some IVF clinics have begun to try to fuse embryos carrying genetic disease genes with embryos carrying healthy genes to repair genetic defects and produce healthy embryos.
Summary
With the development of science and technology, new technologies for IVF pretreatment are emerging, including embryo chromosome screening, gene detection, preimplantation genomics and embryo fusion. The emergence and application of these technologies have greatly improved the success rate of IVF and the quality of embryos. In the future, with the further development and application of technology, IVF pretreatment will be more accurate and personalized, creating better fertility opportunities for couples.
