One of the topics that attracts the most attention in the field of assisted reproduction is embryos. Specifically, the process that these follow until implantation in the future mother’s uterus occurs. This interest has been fueled especially in recent years, not only from a more scientific point of view, but also from a social point of view.
For this reason, we want to talk to you about a recent discovery, whose study was presented at the XI ASEBIR Congress, where it was also awarded: assisted hatching to increase the pregnancy rate in cases of embryonic collapse.
What does it mean for embryos to collapse?
As we said, in an investigation led by the Dr. Marcos Meseguer, embryologist and scientific supervisor at IVI, it has been observed thanks to Time-Lapse systems that approximately 20% of embryos collapse during their development. In other words, in these embryos the separation of more than half of the trophectoderm cells of the zona pellucida occurs. This implies a significant reduction in the implantation potential of these embryos.
“The zona pellucida is like a shell, a protective barrier that the embryo has. This is made up of proteins and sugars, and is elastic and moldable, so it can adapt to the growth of the embryo. It would be something similar to the shell of an egg. As the embryo grows, it breaks down to allow it to come out. The trophectoderm, for its part, is the group of cells that reach the endometrium and invade it, giving rise to the placenta. The trophectoderm really forms a large part of the structure of the blastocyst, which grows until it breaks the zona pellucida, as we have pointed out”explains Dr. Meseguer.
The importance of assisted hatching in cases of embryonic collapse
It is in view of this that the study “Assisted hatching as an alternative to improve results in blastocysts with spontaneous collapse evaluated by means of a time-lapse system” arises. As we said, this study has been led by Dr. Meseguer, in addition to being recently presented and awarded at the XI edition of the ASEBIR Congress (Association for the Study of the Biology of Reproduction), held a few months ago in Toledo.
“This is a study that shows a significant increase in pregnancy rates in the group of embryos collapsed during their development, who underwent assisted hatching (Assisted Hatching –AH, for its acronym in English–) after devitrify them, going from 48% to 60%. This equalizes its chances of success to the rest of the embryos that do not collapse during their development. Thanks to Time-Lapse incubators and Artificial Intelligence we can automatically and accurately detect this collapse phenomenon. This technology is necessary to be able to identify these embryos with lower reproductive potential”adds Dr. Meseguer.
Assisted hatching or assisted hatching was carried out with laser, eliminating a quarter of the embryo’s zona pellucida. The objective was to prove that the lower implantation of collapsed embryos can be reversed by means of this technique of assisted hatching in embryos that are devitrified to be transferred.
“Despite the harmful effect of collapse on the reproductive potential of the embryo, HA helps us optimize the reproductive potential of the embryo, which is why it is emerging as a technique to be incorporated into the routine of in vitro fertilization (IVF) laboratories. to improve pregnancy and implantation rates, ultimately improving patient outcomes in their assisted reproduction processes”concludes Dr. Meseguer.
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