New embryo cryopreservation system: it can reduce freezing damage and bring hope to expectant parents

Washington, May 18, 2021-What is the most subtle and valuable thing you have ever dealt with? If your daily work involves dealing with human eggs, any mistake will affect the lives of others, what would you think?

Normally, healthy women need to receive hormone therapy for several weeks and then have their eggs removed by surgery

But not all transplants are successful, which has given birth to the practice of freezing excess embryos in the IVF cycle for future transfers

In Biomicrofluidics, researchers from the annual publication, the Institute of Genetic Engineering and Biotechnology in Iran and Canada, McGill University and the University of British Columbia introduced an independent microfluidic system to automate the process of replacing water with embryo vitrification cryoprotectants

Water is the enemy of any cryogenic system

"What if the embryos just stay in their original places and give them cryoprotectants?" Microfluidic systems are really good at controlling flow and concentration," said Mojtaba Dashtizad, assistant professor at the National Institute of Genetic Engineering and Biotechnology Say

The researchers’ microfluidic device has a chamber for placing embryos and three channels for gradually introducing cryoprotectants into it, while existing water is discharged through an outlet channel

Unlike traditional cryopreservation methods, this new method exposes embryos to slow and increasing concentrations of cryoprotectants

Dashtizad said: "Our genetic research shows that this reduces the molecular damage caused by cryopreservation

This method simplifies the working process of cryopreservation, improves repeatability, and reduces the occurrence of human error

Dashtizad said: "Our discovery emphasizes the importance of loading cryoprotectants from droplets to gradually controlling the concentration

# # #

###

The article "Towards embryo cryopreservation-on-a-chip: A standalone microfluidic platform for gradual loading of cryoprotectants to minimize cryoinjuries" is authored by Pouria Tirgar, Fatemah Sarmadi, Mojgan Najafi, Parinaz Kazemi, Sina AzizMohseni, Samaneh Fayahndi, Ghazale Zandi, Nikta Ziaie, Aida Shoushtari Zadeh Naseri, Allen Ehrlicher, and Mojtaba Dashtizad.