A revolutionary new genetic technique has been used to enable couples to have healthy children and overcome the misery of miscarriage, it was announced today.
Doctors told how they have used the ability to study full gene maps to screen embryos for a range of abnormalities.
Two couples have now used the technique to have healthy pregnancies – and one baby has already been delivered, researchers from Oxford University, UK, reported.
The doctors used Next Generation Sequencing to analyse details of the chromosomes found in the embryos.
They had previously tested the technique on cells known to carry a range of defects, including chromosome abnormalities, mitochondria mutations and gene defects such as cystic fibrosis.
The findings were reported at the conference of the European Society of Human Reproduction and Embryology in London, UK.
The researchers say the main aim of the technique is to help ensure healthy embryos are used during IVF treatment. But it also enables a series of genetic tests to be performed during screening.
Researcher Dr Dagan Wells said existing screening tests were costly but had demonstrated the potential benefits of screening chromosomes.
She said: "Many of the embryos produced during infertility treatments have no chance of becoming a baby because they carry lethal genetic abnormalities. Next generation sequencing improves our ability to detect these abnormalities and helps us identify the embryos with the best chances of producing a viable pregnancy.
"Potentially, this should lead to improved IVF success rates and a lower risk of miscarriage.
"Next generation sequencing is a way which could make chromosome testing more widely available to a greater number of patients, improving access by cutting the costs.
"Our next step is a randomised clinical trial to reveal the true efficacy of this approach – and this will begin later this year."
Leave a Reply