varoblog

(sz) Context: Increasing evidence suggests that adverse conditions during early prenatal life are associated with cardiometabolic dysfunction in postnatal life. In vitro fertilization (IVF) conception may be an early prenatal life event with long-term health consequences.
Objective: Our objective was to investigate several cardiometabolic measures in 8- to 18-yr-old IVF singletons and spontaneously conceived controls born from subfertile parents.
Design and Setting: This follow-up study was conducted at the VU University medical center, Amsterdam, The Netherlands. more…

From: »The Journal of Clinical Endocrinology & Metabolism« (short review / full article can be purchased online)

(sz) cclaimed fertility doctor compares egg freezing reproductive methods and gives new insight into slow freezing versus Vitrification
Acclaimed fertility specialist and leading expert in the field of reproductive medicine Dr. John Jain, MD, FACOG announced today that he is conducting new clinical trials of egg freezing technology at Santa Monica Fertility Specialists (SMFS) and Egg Freezing Center (EFC). Dr. Jain’s study is the first in the United States to compare the two most promising methods of egg freezing—the more established slow-freeze method and a newer flash-freeze technique known as vitrification.
Preliminary reproductive results are especially encouraging for the vitrification technique with six pregnancies already established, including the first triplet pregnancy from this FDA approved trial.
While the slow-freeze method has already yielded positive results at EFC, the formation of intracellular ice crystals has traditionally presented certain obstacles to the advancement of the technology. Vitrification, which is a newer flash-freezing technique, allows eggs to be frozen so quickly that potentially damaging ice crystals cannot form.
Previously, the potential for viral contamination of the liquid nitrogen tanks used in the vitrification procedure, plus a lack of a comprehensive study of the technique had slowed acceptance of vitrification in the United States. However, with Dr. Jain’s clinical trial, a new vitrification method is employed using closed containers, approved by the FDA for investigation, which protects the eggs from viral contamination.
“Our success in egg freezing has yielded one of the highest published pregnancy rates in the country, with the birth of more than twenty babies,” explains Dr. Jain. “We are optimistic that following this trial, we will be able to expand our abilities, simplify the reproductive process and increase the rates we are currently seeing.”
“We hope to dramatically alter the fertility preservation options for women—particularly for cancer patients,” added Dr. Jain. “And because we have seen no increase in the overall rates of miscarriage, birth defects and chromosomal defects for babies born from frozen eggs over the rates seen with natural pregnancies, the results of this trial are even more relevant.” more…

From: »eMediaWire« (Press Release)

(wz) Australia is facing an infertility crisis as increasing numbers of infertile and “sub-fertile” couples are having children using IVF and other therapies.
A Sunday Herald Sun investigation has revealed a 30 per cent rise in fertility therapies means infertile couples are passing on their defective genes and infertility is being embedded in the national DNA.
Figures going back to 2006 show up to one in 20 babies in Victoria is conceived through IVF or with the help of fertility treatment.
A survey of Melbourne IVF clinics has found a boom in treatments in the past 12 months - a trend confirmed by the Infertility Treatment Authority.
Experts believe the current figure may be as high as one in 15 and will increase.
One in six Victorian couples suffers fertility problems.
A new international study has found sperm counts and birth rates are declining in developed countries, including Australia.
Professors Jens Bonde, of Denmark’s Aarhus University Hospital, and Jorn Olsen, of the University of California, say sperm counts and birth rates are declining in developed countries.
The researchers say infertility now affects about 15 per cent of couples trying to conceive, though not all seek medical help.
Sub-fertility is the term given to couples who have lower than normal fertility but may still be able to conceive naturally. Infertile couples cannot conceive without medical help.
The researchers raise the alarm about the possible effect of environmental pollution with gender-bending chemicals. They say that may explain the fertility problems. more…

From: »Sunday Herald Sun«

(wz) Chicago fertility laboratory claims to have developed a test to measure how many fertile eggs a woman has.
The test kit costs $350. The company marketing the kit, Repromedix, said its target are women who are deciding if they want to have offsprings and want to know their biological limitations.
Dr. Benjamin Leader, chief medical officer of Repromedix, said the device could be likened to a gasoline gauge for motorists who want to know how much fuel is in the tank.
The launch of the Plan Ahead kit sparked debate on its value. Dr. Ralph Kaizer, chief of reproductive endocrinology and infertility at Northwestern University’s Feinberg School of Medicine, said the launch of the kit was premature given the state of reproductive science. more…

From: »AHN«

(sz) Early stage follicles which provide a woman’s life-time stock of immature eggs can be grown and matured in the laboratory, scientists have shown for the first time.
The British breakthrough, which is still being studied, has the potential to revolutionise fertility preservation for women in the next five to 10 years.
A key application would be safeguarding the fertility of women about to undergo chemotherapy for cancer, whose follicles could be removed before the start of treatment.
Powerful anti-cancer drugs can destroy follicles in the ovaries, wiping out any possibility of a woman having children.
Another possibility is that the technique could help women wanting to side-step the menopause, or delay motherhood for the sake of their careers. It could also provide a potentially rich source of eggs for scientists, including those studying stem cells.
A team led by Dr Evelyn Telfer, from the University of Edinburgh, succeeded in growing primordial follicles to a late stage of maturation in the laboratory. more…

From: »The Press Association«

(wz) Gary Culliton speaks to a top Harvard scientist who claims a legal ‘black hole’ means Ireland is missing out on a huge research opportunity.
The Irish Council for Bioethics this week launched its report on stem cell research, which has increased pressure on the government to clarify the legal situation in this area and in relation to in vitro fertilisation.
The central question is not ‘when is the embryo alive or human?’, Dr Stephen Sullivan, an Irish-born Fellow at Harvard University, told Irish Medical Times. “It is clearly both. But then again, so is liver tissue used for transplants. Rather the question is ‘is this embryo a person?’. My personal opinion is an embryo that is made by fusing an egg and sperm in a dish is not a person. Without access to a womb, it can never develop into a pregnancy or a foetus, which I do consider to be human when the central nervous system develops, and there is pain perception and early consciousness.”
Previous publishings of the Council have made a distinction between pre-implantation and post-implantation embryos (only the latter should have the legal status of ‘unborn’, the Council believes). “Decisions about embryonic research now facing Ireland were made in most European countries twenty years ago. This step is long overdue,” Dr Sullivan said.
Prof Frank Barry, of University College Galway’s Remedi Institute, says all of Irish society must decide on the issue, not just a small group. Prof Barry believes that embryonic stem cell research is likely to be more effective than adult stem cell research, in relation to neurological diseases such as Parkinson’s and diseases of the pancreas, because of the developmental biology of these cells.
There needs to be clear legal guidelines for IVF, with a view to securing the rights of the women involved, Dr Sullivan believes. “The hoax bombs sent to IVF clinics and death threats to Ministers have left people quite scared.” more…

From: »The Irish Medical Times«

(wz) IVF pregnancy rates could double and the incidence of serious complications, such as miscarriage and pre-eclampsia, could be halved after a technological breakthrough in fertility research.
Scientists at the University of Adelaide have created a new type of culture which they say will help embryos better survive their five days out of the womb, and help the foetus and placenta develop more normally.
The head of the research team, Claire Roberts, said yesterday the culture, used successfully to grow mice embryos, was “absolutely fantastic” and could change the face of fertility treatments.
“Until now, the culture most commonly used has not been particularly conducive to the survival of embryos, which is one of the main reasons we don’t have a very high success rate in IVF,” she said.
Women in their 20s have about a 40 per cent chance of falling pregnant through IVF with that dropping to about 15 per cent for women in their late 30s.
But the new culture contains three molecules which exist in the birth tract fluids of all mammals, making it easier for embryos to grow and implant successfully in the uterus.
“It has long been thought that the culture used in IVF alters the way the embryo develops and affects the interaction between the embryo and the mother, which compromises the development of the placenta,” Associate Professor Roberts said. more…

From: »The Sydney Morning Herald«

(sz) Doctors Say Hormone Gauge Gives an Accurate Egg Count; Still Awaiting FDA Clearance
At 36 and single, Monica Taneja is a New York anesthesiologist who is increasingly anxious about the ticking of her biological clock. So she recently underwent tests to gauge her egg count, one key indicator of fertility. The results brought welcome news: a healthy supply of eggs. “I feel like I have a window,” Dr. Taneja says.
When it comes to a woman’s biological clock, it’s all about the eggs: How many does she have, and are they healthy enough for conception? A hormone test gaining wider use in the U.S. may offer women a more precise way to assess their ovarian inventory, compared with the tests in common use for years.
This test — one of several used on Dr. Taneja — measures a chemical produced in the body called anti-mullerian hormone, or AMH, which has been shown to provide an accurate snapshot of a woman’s egg count. Over the past few years, the test, which reads AMH levels from a blood sample, has been routinely available in Europe, where much of the research on AMH as an ovarian-reserve marker has been done.
But the lack of uniform measurement standards has slowed its adoption in the U.S., where such tests come under Food and Drug Administration oversight. AMH-detection systems haven’t yet satisfied FDA criteria for clinical use. Even though it awaits clearance, there has been no move to restrict use of the test in doctors’ offices. more…

From: »The Wallstreet Journal«

(sz) A new approach to fertility treatment that could allow women to have a cheaper form of IVF in their lunch hour is being developed by a company that hopes to introduce it in Britain this year.
The Invocell device is designed to enable IVF to be performed without complex laboratory equipment and could make the procedure faster, more convenient and less expensive.
In standard IVF, eggs are fertilised with sperm outside the body, and any resulting embryos are then left to develop in culture for three to five days before the best ones are transferred to the womb.
The Invocell device is a sealed capsule that allows fertilisation to take place inside the body, in the vaginal cavity. A woman would first be given mild drugs to stimulate her ovaries, and then eggs would be removed from them while she is under sedation. Up to seven eggs are then put into the Invocell capsule, along with washed sperm. The capsule is then placed inside the vagina. After three days the patient would return for a second appointment, in which the capsule is removed and any fertilised embryos are examined for quality. The best one or two would then be transferred to the womb.
The first appointment would take about 90 minutes and the second half an hour, according to Claude Ranoux, of BioXcell, the Massachusetts-based company that developed the device. more…

From: »The Times«

(sz) Scientists at The Jackson Laboratory are making major advancements in in-vitro fertilization techniques and hope to license the technology and make it commercially available, according to lab officials.
As a boost to this effort, Jackson Lab has received a Maine Technology Institute grant that will help fund research toward creating a standardized, automated system for in-vitro fertilization.
The grant for $12,500 is small by Jackson Lab standards — the lab received more than $50 million from the National Institutes of Health in 2007 — but the implications of the grant help illustrate a point that business leaders and government officials have been saying for years. Because of groundbreaking work being done at Maine firms such as Jackson Lab and Idexx Laboratories in Westbrook, among others, the state has the potential to become a global leader in the field of biotechnology, they have said.
Jackson Lab, known worldwide for its research in using mice to study the genetic causes of human disease, in 2006 spun off its first for-profit entity, Bar Harbor Biotechnology in Trenton, which manufactures genetic profile kits used in disease research. The research the MTI grant will help pay for could result in the lab spinning off another commercial enterprise that would be based in Maine, according to lab officials.
According to Shane Beckim, program associate at MTI, the grant will help fund six to nine months of fertilization research at the lab. more…

From: »Bangor Daily News«