Embryo quality and chromosomal abnormality in embryos from couples undergoing assisted reproductive technology using preimplantation genetic screening

Abstract

Objective: To detect common chromosomal aneuploidy variations in embryos from couples undergoing assisted reproductive technology and preimplantation genetic screening and their possible associations with embryo quality. Methods: In this study, 359 embryos from 62 couples were screened for chromosomes 13, 21, 18, X, and Y by fluorescence insitu hybridization. For biopsy of blastomere, a laser was used to remove a significantly smaller portion of the zona pellucida. One blastomere was gently biopsied by an aspiration pipette through the hole. After biopsy, the embryo was immediately returned to the embryo scope until transfer. Embryo integrity and blastocyst formation were assessed on day 5. Results: Totally, 282 embryos from 62 couples were evaluated. The chromosomes were normal in 199 (70.57%) embryos and abnormal in 83 (29.43%) embryos. There was no significant association between the quality of embryos and numerical chromosomal abnormality (P=0.67). Conclusions: Embryo quality is not significantly correlated with its genetic status. Hence, the quality of embryos determined by morphological parameters is not an appropriate method for choosing embryos without these abnormalities.

Keywords

• assisted reproductive technology; preimplantation genetic screening; aneuploidy; fluorescence insitu hybridization; chromosomal abnormalities; embryo quality; blastomere; blastocyst