Scientists at Columbia University’s Fertility Center (United States) have reported the first successful pregnancy achieved using an Artificial Intelligence (AI)-guided method designed to recover sperm in men with azoospermia. In whom the ejaculate contains little or no sperm.
Research letters report research results and are externally peer-reviewed. But unlike articles, they are shorter and usually report preliminary studies or initial findings. Male factors account for about 40 percent of infertility cases in couples. Of those, between 10 and 15 percent are men with azoospermia.
A semen sample may appear completely normal, but when examined under a microscope, “it reveals a sea of cellular debris, with no visible sperm,” explains Zev Williams. Lead author of the article and director of the Columbia University Fertility Center.
Therefore, many couples with male factor infertility have little chance of having a biological child. Men with azoospermia can undergo a procedure to surgically remove sperm from the testicles. But the operation is often unsuccessful and can cause vascular problems, inflammation, or a temporary decrease in testosterone levels.
Some specialized laboratories employ technicians to manually inspect semen simples. But the lengthy and expensive process can damage the sperm. “The field has faced the challenge of finding a better way to identify and retrieve viable sperm from men with extremely low sperm counts,” Williams explains.
A Healthy Sperm
To find an alternative, Williams assembled a multidisciplinary team of researchers and physicians to devise a new method that combines various technologies to retrieve sperm from men with azoospermia.
The STAR (Sperm Tracking and Recovery) method. Introduced earlier this year, uses high-powered imaging technology to scan a semen sample from men with azoospermia (taking more than 8 million images in less than an hour).
Then, AI identifies the sperm in the sample, and a microfluidic chip with tiny, hair-like channels isolates the portion of the semen sample containing the sperm. In milliseconds, a robot extracts sperm so they can be used to create an embryo or frozen and stored for future use.
STAR was tested on a patient who had been trying to start a family for almost 20 years and had undergone multiple in vitro fertilization cycles at other centers. Several manual sperm searches, and two surgical procedures to extract sperm.
Moreover the patient provided a 3.5 ml semen sample. In about two hours, STAR scanned 2.5 million images and identified two viable sperm. Which were then used to create two embryos and achieve a pregnancy.
Futhermore the results, although based on a single case, demonstrate the viability of this technology in overcoming the long-standing barriers to helping men with azoospermia.
“It only takes one healthy sperm to create an embryo.” Larger clinical trials are currently underway to evaluate the effectiveness of STAR in broader patient populations.
With information from EFE, The Lancet, and GeneOnline
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