P-267: In vitro outcome of a prospective, randomized trial comparing the GIII Series ™ and Quinn’s Advantage® sequential media systems for embryo development

Abstract

While the physiological conditions in the female reproductive tract change, the conditions in the culture dish are stable. To meet the changing requirement of the developing embryo, sequential media are necessary. The objective of this study was to evaluate the GIII Series™ and Quinn’s Advantage® sequential media systems for fertilization rate, embryos transferred, and embryos cryopreserved. Oocytes (n=1008) within patients (n=59) were randomly assigned to the GIII Series™ (n=505) and Quinn’s Advantage® (n=503) sequential medium treatment groups at the time of retrieval. Separate culture were maintained corresponding to the initial sequential medium treatment groups until the time of embryo transfer and cryopreservation. All patients (to include ICSI with ejaculated sperm, MESA, and donor oocytes) undergoing IVF in a 5 week time period were included in this study. Outcome measures included normal fertilization, abnormal fertilization, cleavage, blastulation, and cryopreservation rates as well as other measures of embryo quality. Following retrieval, oocytes were held for at least 4 hours in G-FERT PLUS™ or Quinn’s Advantage® Fertilization medium and then inseminated by means of conventional IVF or ICSI. Inseminated oocytes were transferred to G-1™ version 3 or Quinn’s Advantage® Cleavage medium directly after ICSI (4-8 hrs) or after fertilization assessment (15-20 hrs) for conventional IVF. On day 3 of culture, embryos were moved to G-2™ version 3 or Quinn’s Advantage® Blastocyst medium where they were cultured until day 6. Fertilization and embryo culture took place in an atmosphere of 6% CO2, 5% O2, and 89% N2 at 37.0°C. T-tests and Chi-square analysis were applied to identify differences in the end points measured. The outcome data for this study are summarized in the table. More embryos were transferred from those cultured in the GIII Series™ sequential media system than those cultured in Quinn’s Advantage® sequential media system. No differences were found when comparing normal fertilization, abnormal fertilization, cleavage rates, and number of embryos frozen per transfer when using either the GIII Series™ or Quinn’s Advantage® sequential media systems. The overall clinical pregnancy rate was 46% with an implantation rate of 31%.Tabled 1a,b Values with different superscripts are different. T-test; χ2, P<0.05 a,b Values with different superscripts are different. T-test; χ2, P<0.05 The GIII Series™ sequential media system may lead to better embryo development resulting in higher quality embryos available for transfer. However, the data presented demonstrate that the GIII Series™ and Quinn’s Advantage® sequential media systems are both acceptable for embryo culture and blastocyst development.