Researchers at the Columbia University Fertility Center in the United States reported the first successful pregnancy with the help of AI in the case of a man with no sperm.
MADRID, Nov 5 (EUROPA PRESS).- Men with azoospermia may undergo a procedure to surgically remove the sperm of the testicles, but the procedure is often unsuccessful and can cause vascular problemsinflammation or a temporary decrease in blood levels testosterone.
Some specialized laboratories employ technicians to manually inspect blood samples. semen —a long and expensive process—after they have been processed with a centrifuge or other agents that can damage the sperm.
FIRST SUCCESSFUL PREGNANCY WITH THE HELP OF ARTIFICIAL INTELLIGENCE
The first successful pregnancy has been achieved using an AI-guided method they developed to recover sperm in men with azoospermia, in which the ejaculate contains little or no sperm, according to researchers at the Columbia University Fertility Center (United States). The case is described in an investigative letter published in ‘The Lancet’.
Male factors account for approximately 40 percent of infertility cases in couples. Of these, between 10 percent and 15 percent of men with infertility have azoospermia.
“A semen sample may look completely normal, but examining it under a microscope reveals a sea of cellular debris, with no visible sperm,” explains Zev Williams, lead author of the study and director of the Columbia University Fertility Center. “Many couples with male infertility are told that they have little chance of having a biological child.”
“The field has faced a real challenge in finding a better way to identify and recover viable sperm in men with extremely low sperm counts,” Williams said.
Williams brought together a team of researchers and doctors to develop a new method that combines various technologies to identify and recover rare sperm from men with azoospermia. “Our team included experts in advanced imaging techniques, microfluidics and reproductive endocrinology to address each individual step necessary to find and isolate rare sperm,” says Hemant Suryawanshi, assistant professor of reproductive sciences at Columbia University Vagelos College of Physicians and Surgeons and leader of the project.
The STAR (Sperm Tracking and Recovery) method, introduced earlier this year, uses high-resolution imaging technology to analyze a semen sample from men with azoospermia, obtaining more than eight million images in less than an hour.
STAR: SPERM MONITORING AND RECOVERY THROUGH AI
Using artificial intelligence, sperm in the sample are identified, and a microfluidic chip with tiny hair-like channels isolates the portion of the semen sample that contains the sperm. In milliseconds, a robot carefully extracts the sperm so it 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, including multiple IVF cycles at other centers, several manual sperm searches, and two surgical procedures to extract sperm.
ONE SINGLE SPERM AND AI MADE IT A REALITY
The patient provided a 3.5 ml semen sample. In about two hours, the STAR system analyzed 2.5 million images and identified two viable sperm, which were subsequently used to create two embryos and initiate a pregnancy.
The findings, although based on a single case, demonstrate the viability of this technology in overcoming long-standing barriers in helping men with azoospermia. “Only one healthy sperm is needed to create an embryo,” says Williams.
Larger clinical studies are underway to evaluate the effectiveness of STAR in larger patient populations.