The future
In the near future we can predict great development in certain areas.
We are currently conducting a large study in the area of time-lapse. Special incubators with built-in microscopes will continuously monitor and record the development of the embryo. This technique will allow for the study of the embryo’s cell division in further detail since the embryo does not have to be retrieved and put under a microscope manually in order to be studied. The speed and symmetry of an embryo’s cell division can be recorded and embryos can be selected for transfer based on this information.
Genetic screening with micro array technique means taking cell samples from the outer layer of blastocysts. By analyzing all chromosomes in the cell sample you can detect deviation which would not have been detected under a microscope. By not using these samples of blastocysts for IVF the results of IVF improves. Large comparative studies are pending internationally, but it is a costly and technically complicated technique.
Our hope is to develop and use both of these techniques in our organization in the future.