Chapters authored
A Novel Discipline in Embryology — Animal Embryo Breeding By Bin Wu, Linsen Zan, Fusheng Quan and Hai Wang
The modern animal biotechnologies, such as animal cloning, transgenesis, sex determination, stem cells, designing new livestock, must be performed on animal gametes including sperm and oocytes, and embryos based on embryology theory. Currently, some key biotechnologies in embryology have become the most powerful tool for animal scientists and breeders to improve genetic construction of animal herds. Here, authors put forward a new concept of Animal Embryo Breeding Science to describe this discipline formation, development, and application in animal genetic improvement and breeding. The relationship of embryo breeding with other disciplines has been profiled. Thus, animal scientists and breeders can easily understand and apply embryo breeding theory and related key techniques to accelerate animal improvement speed, to modify genetic construction of animal population, and to design and create new animal individual or breed.
Part of the book: New Discoveries in Embryology
Improving ART Pregnancy Rate with Two Kinds of Media and Two Types of Incubators By Bin Wu, Jinzhou Qin, Suzhen Lu, Linda Wu and Timothy J. Gelety
Culture media and incubators have played a key role in embryo quality. Here, we observed individual patient’s embryos to have different response for media and incubators. Patient’s 1850 zygotes were divided into two groups randomly and were cultured in Global and in P1 medium. The cleavage rate and embryo quality were recorded. The result showed that the cleavage, top quality embryos on Day 2 and Day 3 were not statistically different between media. However, 45% patient’s embryos grew very well in both Global and P1. 22% patient’s embryos grew well only in Global but poor quality in P1, while 21% grew well in the Global but poorly in the P1. Only 12% patient embryos did not grow well in both. The pregnant rate was only 40% in P1 or 42.5% in Global (P>0.05). However, when two media were used simultaneously, the pregnant rate increased to 70.1%. Also, two incubators showed significant higher pregnant rate than in single incubator (73.2% vs. 60%, P<0.05). In conclusion, the favorable response of individual patient’s embryos to media and incubators suggests that using two media and two incubators for embryo culture could significantly improve embryo quality and pregnant rates.
Part of the book: Embryo Cleavage
Effect of Assisted Reproductive Technology (ART) on Babies Born: Compared by IVF Laboratories of Two Countries By Linda Wu, Jinzhou Qin, Dikai Zhang, Minqi Zhang, Suzhen Lu, Jennifer Howell, Timothy J. Gelety and Bin Wu
Assisted reproductive technology (ART) has been widely used for infertility treatment, but many people have concern about their baby’s health. The objective of this chapter is to provide some detailed data about the effect of ART on human birth babies by analyzing the data from in vitro fertilization (IVF) centers in two countries. All recent records related to a baby’s birth including mother’s age, gestational days, baby’s sex, and birth weight data were collected and analyzed according to fresh or frozen embryo transfer procedure. Normal delivery data without ART were used as control. The result showed that ART patient age is significantly older than non-IVF women; the gestation of fresh and frozen embryo transfer is the same as normal spontaneous conception gestation days, but women pregnant with multiple gestations have shorter gestational period and early birth rate as well as low birth weight; and there is no significant difference in the baby’s weight between ART singleton babies and normal conception babies, but male babies weight is more than female babies, and multiple gestation’s birth weights are significantly lower than singletons, while frozen embryo transfer babies have significantly heavier birth weight than fresh embryo transfer. Also, the frozen embryo transfer technique may significantly decrease premature birth rate. Thus, frozen embryo transfer may be recommended as a health strategy in ART.
Part of the book: Embryology
Impact of Body Mass Index (BMI) on Retrieval of Oocyte Numbers in In Vitro Fertilization Women By Linda Wu and Bin Wu
Previous research and clinical reports have discovered that body weight significantly affects a patient’s fertility status. Underweight, overweight, or obese women may experience reduced fertility. Currently, assisted reproductive technology (ART) is used as treatment for infertile couples to conceive a child. However, whether abnormal body mass indexes (BMIs) affect infertile oocyte production is not clear. The objective of this study is to determine the association between BMI and retrieved oocyte numbers. A total of 136 IVF patient data in 2016 was reported from Reproductive Health Center. The relationship between patient’s BMI and retrieved oocyte numbers has been analyzed and their correlation coefficients between patients’ age, oocyte numbers, and BMI have been calculated. The results further proved that BMI affects collecting oocyte numbers and oocyte maturation rate. Overweight patients had fewer oocytes retrieved than that of normal weight patients. Likewise, obese patients had even fewer oocytes retrieved than that of both normal-weight and overweight patients. Underweight BMIs seem to have no effect on the number of oocytes collected; however, the oocyte quality and embryo production needs to be further studied. Results from this study may be used by IVF physicians and practitioners when consulting patients for IVF treatments.
Part of the book: Embryology Update
Perspective Chapter: Application of Abnormally Fertilized Eggs and the Associated Clinical Outcomes By Bin Wu, Xue Feng, Suzhen Lu and Timothy J. Gelety
Human IVF laboratory often shows many abnormal fertilization eggs, such as no pronucleus (0PN), monopronucleus (1PN), three pronuclei (3PN) or multi-pronuclei (mPN) zygotes and these abnormal eggs are usually not used and typically discarded. Recent researches have showed that further evaluation on these abnormal eggs may provide some hope for aged infertile couples to have babies in their family. Our study showed that 0PN eggs may be rescued by introcytoplasmic sperm injection (ICSI). The 1PN zygotes should be cultured to observe their cleavage and blastocyst formation until Day 3 to Day 6. Selecting normal chromosomal embryo transfer may have healthy baby birth. Although most of 3PN embryos are genetically abnormal chromosomal composition, a small portion of 3PN embryos may develop to blastocyst with normal chromosomal composition. Also, those embryos derived from 3PN, especially by ICSI, have more possibility for self-correction to become normal euploid embryos. The microsurgically removing 1PN from 3PN zygotes may artificially correct this abnormal fertilization. After one PN removal, the formed blastocyst may be screened by the PGT for embryo transfer in rare embryo patients to achieve pregnancy and delivery of a healthy newborn. Based on no obvious difference of ooplasm between normal fertilized 2PN and 3PN zygotes, the cytoplasm of 3PN zygotes may be used to supplement the aged woman poor oocytes to improve embryo quality. Transferring partial cytoplasm from 3PN zygote to the fertilized 2PN zygotes of aged woman may promote the receipt embryo to develop blastocysts. This partial ooplasmic transfer does not change the aging woman genetic composition and the woman embryos still keep her with her husband genetic genes in the cell nucleus. However, the baby born with this technique might appear epigenetics because the mixed mitochondrial DNA would be passed on to all future generations.
Part of the book: New Perspectives in Human Embryology [Working title]
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