Abstract
The selection of high-quality sperm is essential to the success of in vitro fertilization (IVF). As human cervical mucus has a high viscosity, without enough swimming persistence, human sperm clouds cannot arrive at the ampulla to fertilize the egg. In this study, we used swimming capability and motion characteristics that are known to be associated with fertilization ability to evaluate the quality of sperm. Here, a clinically applicable polymethyl methacrylate (PMMA)-based microdevice was designed and fabricated for sperm evaluation and screening for swimming capability and persistence in a viscous environment. In this study, we applied methylcellulose (MC) to mimic the natural properties of mucus in vivo to achieve the selection of motile sperm. Sperm motion was recorded by an inverted microscope. The statistical features were extracted and analyzed. Hundreds of sperm in two treated groups with different concentrations of MC and one control group with human tubal fluid (HTF) media were video recorded. This device can achieve a one-step procedure of high-quality sperm selection and achieve the quantitative evaluation of sperm swimming capability and persistence. Sperm with good swimming capability and persistence may be more suitable for fertilization in a viscous environment. This microdevice and methods could be used to guide the evaluation of sperm motility and screening in the future.
Highlights
Infertility affects more than 70 million couples worldwide, 30% of infertility cases are caused solely by male factor infertility, and 50% of infertility cases include a combination of male and female factor infertility [1,2]
The ability to obtain a subpopulation of sperm that is suitable for fertilization is essential in sperm cryopreservation [4,5,6,7], in vitro fertilization (IVF) [8,9,10,11,12,13], intracytoplasmic sperm injection [14], and artificial insemination [15]
This paper describes a multi-viscosity circular symmetric chip designed for sperm evaluation and screening for swimming capability, swimming persistence, and inactivation rate
Summary
Infertility affects more than 70 million couples worldwide, 30% of infertility cases are caused solely by male factor infertility, and 50% of infertility cases include a combination of male and female factor infertility [1,2]. Huang [16], Fu [17], Cho [18], Schuster [19], and Matsuura [20] designed microfluidic chips that can successfully obtain motile sperms These previous studies made use of the principle that motile sperm can swim through laminar interfaces to achieve a selection of high-motility sperm in vivo. Xie et al [28] obtained motile sperm using a microfluidic chip with a modified straight pipe length and width They selectively cultured cumulus cells in a bi-branch channel to generate a chemoattractant-forming chemical gradient. About 6–11% of motile sperm had a response to the thermal gradient Both chemotaxis and thermotaxis are short-range mechanisms; rheotaxis [34,35,36] is a long-range mechanism in which sperm can swim up against a flow. This paper studies the motility parameters of sperm in a multi-visc3oosift1y3 environment through a circular symmetric chip and aims to find a more prepotent sperm stuhrbopuogphulaactiiorcnultahrastyhmams egtoriocdchsiwp iamnmd ianimg sctaopafibnidlitaymaonrde psrwepimotmenintgsppeermrsissutebnpcoe.puAlatqiounantthiatatthivaes agnoaoldyssiswoimf smpienrmg cmapoatibliitliytypaarnadmsewteirms mwiansgppeerfrosrismteendceto. sAtuqduyatnhteitiartrivesepaonnadlyinsgismofecshpaenrmismmuontidlietyr dpiafrfaemreenttevrsiswcoassitpyecrofonrdmiteidontso. sFtiundayllyth, ewirerheosppoenoduirngstumdeychcaannisbme uusneddetrodiimffeprreonvtevtihsceosspiteyrmconmdoittiiolintys. aFsisneaslslym, ewnet ahnodpeguoiudre sthtuedeyvaclaunatbioenuosef dspteormimmprootivlietythaendspsecrrmeenminogti.lity assessment and guide the evaluation of sperm motility and screening
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