Article
Wide range of chromosome abnormalities in the embryos of young egg donors

https://doi.org/10.1016/S1472-6483(10)61007-3Get rights and content

Abstract

Embryo chromosome studies show high rates of abnormalities, above 50%, but most embryos studied were from patients aged 35 and older. The objectives of this study were firstly, to evaluate the rate of chromosome abnormalities in embryos from young egg donors, and secondly, to compare the range of chromosome abnormality rates between donors and non-egg donor cycles, both undergoing preimplantation genetic diagnosis (PGD) for infertility using fluorescence in-situ hybridization analysis with probes for chromosomes X, Y, 13, 15, 16, 18, 21, and 22. On average, only 43% of the embryos were chromosomally normal, while the comparison group had euploidy rates between 34 (age group 18–34) (P < 0.001) and 21% (age group 40–45) (P < 0.001). There was considerable variation between donor cycles, with almost one-third having less than 30% normal embryos. Also, within donors and recipients repeating several IVF cycles with PGD, only 29–56% of the second PGD cycles had similar rates of normal embryos to the first cycle, while in the comparison group it was 64%. The results can explain why some egg donors are successful whereas others are not, and may also show that a policy of PGD for first time egg donors is appropriate and indicated.

Section snippets

Santiago Munní has been director of PGD at Reprogenetics since 2001. This company, which he founded, offers PGD services to over 150 IVF centers in the US, and also has labs in Spain and Japan. Originally from Barcelona, Spain, Dr Munní gained his PhD in genetics from the University of Pittsburgh and joined Dr Jacques Cohen at Cornell University Medical College, New York in 1991. There he developed the first PGD test to detect embryonic numerical chromosome abnormalities. His work has been

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    Santiago Munní has been director of PGD at Reprogenetics since 2001. This company, which he founded, offers PGD services to over 150 IVF centers in the US, and also has labs in Spain and Japan. Originally from Barcelona, Spain, Dr Munní gained his PhD in genetics from the University of Pittsburgh and joined Dr Jacques Cohen at Cornell University Medical College, New York in 1991. There he developed the first PGD test to detect embryonic numerical chromosome abnormalities. His work has been recognized by several prizes: in 1994, 1995, 1998 and 2005 from the Society for Assisted Reproductive Technology, and in 1996 from the American Society for Reproductive Medicine. Recently the PGD team has shown higher pregnancy rates and lower spontaneous rates in women of advanced age undergoing PGD. This team has performed more than 700 PGD cycles for translocations and over 5500 PGD cycles for chromosome abnormalities related to advanced maternal age or with recurrent pregnancy loss. Dr Munní has more than 150 publications to his name, and is a frequent lecturer, both nationally and internationally, on his team's work and the field of preimplantation genetics. He was recently blessed with his first daughter, Mar.

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