Embryology News and Research

RSS

Embryology is the study of the development of an embryo. An embryo is defined as any organism in an early stage well before birth or hatching, or in plants, before germination occurs.

Japanese researchers use pluripotent stem cells to reproduce higher-order kidney structures

In the embryonic kidney, three types of precursor cells, nephron progenitor cells, ureteric buds, and interstitial progenitor cells, interact to form three-dimensional structures of the kidney.

20 Dec 2017

Live births more likely to occur in women with sufficient vitamin D, research finds

Researchers are calling for a randomized clinical trial to investigate the potential role of vitamin D supplementation in improving live birth rates following assisted reproduction treatment.

15 Nov 2017

Sperm and eggs of transgenders to be stored by NHS before sex changes

Several transgender adolescents are opting to freeze their eggs and sperm with the Britain's NHS to leave an option for parenthood later in life open, according to doctors.

2 Oct 2017

Phthalate levels in expectant fathers influence sperm epigenetics, study suggests

Early results from a larger, ongoing study led by environmental health scientist Richard Pilsner at the University of Massachusetts Amherst suggest that phthalate levels in expectant fathers have an effect on couples' reproductive success via epigenetic modifications of sperm DNA.

12 Sep 2017

Older wombs have more trouble in adapting to pregnancy

Deciding to start a family later in life could be about more than just the age of your eggs. A new study in mice suggests the age of a mother's womb may also have a part to play.

5 Sep 2017

Study assesses success and efficacy of ovarian tissue freezing

Many women are turning to egg freezing to promote fertility, but what happens when it isn't an option because of special medical or other conditions? And, what option is there for women who want to preserve hormonal function, not just fertility?

13 Jul 2017

Rise in direct-to-consumer DNA testing brings new ‘threat’ to people involved in donor conception, social scientist warns

The rise in direct-to-consumer DNA testing has increased the likelihood of individuals unexpectedly finding out they are donor-conceived, raising important ethical questions, warns social scientist Dr Marilyn Crawshaw from the University of York.

13 Jul 2017

Novel technique analyzes sperm morphology and motility in embryo formation process

The research, presented at the European Society of Human Reproduction and Embryology annual conference, which ends today in Geneva, Switzerland, describes for the first time the use of an experimental technique that has made it possible to analyze the functioning of human sperm in contact with the cytoplasmic content of the eggs in vitro.

7 Jul 2017

Study reveals higher number of eggs as determinants of IVF success

A higher number of eggs retrieved in an IVF treatment cycle is independently associated with more chromosomally normal embryos available for transfer, according to a new Australian study.

4 Jul 2017

Live birth outcome affected by age of male partner, study shows

Men, unlike women, do not have a menopause or a predictable and detectable decline in their fertility. Female age is thus the dominant factor in predicting (or explaining) a couple's chance of conception, whether natural or assisted.

3 Jul 2017

Viral vectors for gene transfer can travel to distant areas in the brain, study shows

Gene transfer is seen as a hopeful therapy for Alzheimer's and Parkinson's patients. The approach involves using harmless laboratory-produced viruses to introduce important genes into the brain cells.

16 Jun 2017

Study sheds light on how different families relate to each other following open embryo adoption

EXPERTS at the University of Huddersfield are researching the emergence of a new style of family creation that sees couples "adopt" embryos and, after the child is born, remain in contact with the donors and in many cases develop a special relationship with them.

19 May 2017

Light-sheet fluorescence microscopy manufacturer Luxendo acquired by Bruker

Bruker announces that it has acquired Luxendo, a privately held spin-off of the European Molecular Biology Laboratory (EMBL) that develops and manufactures proprietary light-sheet fluorescence microscopy instruments.

From Bruker Nano Surfaces and Metrology 9 May 2017

Pioneering IVF technique offers hope to families with inheritable mitochondrial disorders

Details of a pioneering IVF technique using mitochondrial replacement therapy (MRT) have been revealed, giving hope to those families with inheritable mitochondrial disorders that they may be able to have healthy children in the future.

3 Apr 2017

World's first licence for mitochondrial donation IVF may enable women to have disease-free babies

Eminent UK reproductive and genetics experts have become the first in the world licensed to provide a revolutionary IVF procedure using donor DNA – which they spent decades developing – enabling women carrying potentially fatal mitochondrial disease to have healthy, genetically-related babies.

20 Mar 2017

Stem cells strictly abide by innate developmental clocks, study shows

The mystery of what controls the range of developmental clocks in mammals — from 22 months for an elephant to 12 days for an opossum — may lie in the strict time-keeping of pluripotent stem cells for each unique species.

28 Feb 2017

Carving a career in science

I was interested in a whole range of subjects, but the one that really grasped me from a young age was biology and, in particular, human biology. I was really fascinated with how the human body worked and I still am; that's something that has stayed with me.

15 Feb 2017

New ASRM embryo transfer simulator garners positive response from reproductive health professionals

ASRM Embryo Transfer Simulator has been successfully deployed over the last 12 months at embryo transfer simulation workshops and training sessions.

From VirtaMed 20 Dec 2016

UK to officially authorise clinical use of ground-breaking ‘three-person baby IVF’

The United Kingdom will likely this week become the first country to officially authorise clinical use of ground-breaking mitochondrial donation IVF to enable healthy babies to be born to women carrying deadly mitochondrial disease, which starves major organs of energy.

16 Dec 2016

Scientists uncover changes in immediate environment of DNA after fertilization

A team of scientists at the Helmholtz Zentrum München shows changes in the immediate environment of DNA after the ovum and sperm fuse to form the zygote. The results suggest why all conceivable somatic cells can develop from the germ cells. The study has been published in the journal 'Genes and Development'.

6 Dec 2016