DEVICE FOR SPERM SELECTION BY THERMOTAXIS

Currently, the efficiency of assisted reproduction techniques in terms of producing good quality embryos is relatively low, which translates into low implantation rates of embryos produced in vitro after transfer to the recipient female. It is widely accepted that one of the factors that prevents improving this efficiency is the lack of a selection procedure for those spermatozoa whose physiological and molecular status is adequate to ensure correct embryonic development. Therefore, a high-quality sperm separation for use in assisted reproduction techniques, both animal and human, can have a great economic and social impact.

For this reason, the research group of Molecular Embryology in the Department of Animal Reproduction of INIA has developed a device for the selection of sperm with the best migratory capacity, based on the property of mammalian sperm (including humans) to migrate in a temperature gradient, being these the only sperm that in vivo can get to fertilize the oocyte.

It is a device can easily be manufactured on a large scale due to its design, with a disposable selection unit made of a flexible and biodegradable material with a central capillary zone that avoids convection processes during thermotaxis selection and avoids an accidental mixing between both compartments while keeping both compartments closed, representing a great ease of handling compared to other known devices.

Current development status

Laboratory prototypes