Sperm Selection for Infertility Treatment (SSA)

Summary

Infertility is considered a disease by the World Health Organization and it is increasing worldwide affecting more than 70 million couples. About 50% of the cases are due to male inability to fertilize the oocyte. In the last 40 years, several techniques, known as Assisted Reproduction Technology (ART) have been developed to treat infertility, but the efficiency is still relatively low (around 30%) whereas the remaining 70% attempts again several times, an expensive and emotionally moving treatment. Over 4million of infertility treatments are practiced around the world per year and a 50% increment is expected over the next 6years. Even though ART allows the birth of babies that would be impossible under natural circumstances, it is still necessary to improve the procedures in order to increase treatment efficiency. The success of ART depends, to some extent, on sperm quality. Indeed, the relevance of spermatozoa quality is notorious even beyond fertilization, extending to embryo development and implantation. In this context, it has been developed a new technology that allows the selection of those spermatozoa at their best functional state (Sperm Selection Assay, SSA; Patent approved for USA and Europe, pending for Japan and Argentina). This method is based on the attraction of spermatozoa ready to fertilize the egg, towards a physiological attractant molecule. The SSA may be applied to improve diagnosis and infertility treatment. The investigators hypothesis states that the use of the SSA will improve the number of good-quality embryos which are the ones to be transferred by intracytoplasmic sperm injection (ICSI), providing a healthy embryo development. The protocol involves three experimental groups where the SSA will be used or not, before performing the ICSI: 1)SSA containing the sperm attractant molecule, 2)SSA without the attractant molecule, and 3)without SSA. The patient inclusion criteria involve female factors associated to tubal obstruction and/or endometriosis and male factors associated to sperm disability. Several outcome parameters will be determined, the percentage of fertilization, embryo quality, rate of pregnancy and rate of birth. The study will be carried out in the Universitarian Institute of Reproductive Medicine (IUMER) which has been recently established in a public hospital depending on the National University of Córdoba, offering free high complexity infertility treatment to patients without health insurance or economic support

Conditions

• Infertility

Interventions

DEVICE

Sperm Selection Assay

Sperm Selection Assay (SSA) that allow the investigators to select functional spermatozoa, which are capacitated, with intact DNA, reduced oxidative stress and with good viability and motility, on the basis of sperm chemotaxis towards a physiological attractant molecule.

OTHER

Attractant Substance

Capacitated spermatozoa may be oriented by following an increasing concentration gradient of an attractant molecule, a phenomenon called sperm chemotaxis. This is a guidance mechanism observed in vitro, which may transport and retain spermatozoa at the fertilization site. Though several molecules have been suggested to attract human spermatozoa, in the context of gamete interaction prior to fertilization, progesterone has biological importance for several reasons. After ovulation, this hormone is secreted by the cumulus cells that surround the oocyte, diffusing to form a molecular gradient toward the periphery of the cumulus and beyond. Notably, a gradient of very low concentrations (picomolar) of progesterone is sufficient to chemically attract capacitated human spermatozoa

PROCEDURE

ICSI

An in vitro fertilization procedure in which a single sperm is injected directly into an egg

Sponsors & Collaborators

• Universidad Nacional de Córdoba

  lead OTHER

Principal Investigators

• Laura C. Giojalas, PhD · National University of Cordoba

Study Design

Allocation

RANDOMIZED

Purpose

TREATMENT

Masking

DOUBLE

Model

PARALLEL

Eligibility

Min Age

18 Years

Max Age

50 Years

Sex

ALL

Healthy Volunteers

Yes

Timeline & Regulatory

Start

2016-08-31

Primary Completion

2020-12-31

Completion

2020-12-31

Countries

• Argentina

Study Locations