• Login
    • Join
  • FOLLOW:
  • Subscribe Free
    • Magazine
    • eNewsletter
    Checkout
    • Magazine
    • News
    • Opinions
    • Top 30
    • Research
    • Supply Chain
    • Device Sectors
    • Directory
    • Events
    • Resources
    • Microsites
    • More
  • Magazine
  • News
  • Opinions
  • Top 30
  • Research
  • Supply Chain
  • Device Sectors
  • Directory
  • Events
  • Resources
  • Microsites
  • Current / Back Issues
    Features
    Editorial
    Digital Edition
    eNewsletter Archive
    Our Team
    Editorial Guidelines
    Reprints
    Subscribe Now
    Advertise Now
    Top Features
    OEMs Seek Molders Offering Timely Techniques

    Robotic Surgery: Cutting Through to the Latest

    Packaging, Sterilization Considerations Go Part and Parcel with Product Development

    Cybersecurity Challenges Leave Medical Device Makers Insecure

    OEMs Are Demanding Designs that Challenge Suppliers
    OEM News
    Supplier News
    Service / Press Releases
    Online Exclusives
    Press Releases
    People in the News
    Product & Service Releases
    Supplier News
    Medtech Makers
    Technical Features
    International News
    Videos
    Product & Service Releases
    Live From Shows
    Regulatory
    Financial/Business
    Top News
    Cepheid, BioGX Partner to Create GeneXpert Monkeypox Test

    Siemens' Varian Gains FDA IDE Nod for FAST-02 Trial

    Acutus Medical Launches AcQCross Line Extension

    Accelmed Partners II, Lauxera Capital Partners Invest in Veranex

    Agnes Lee Named SVP of Investor Relations, Strategic Planning at Inogen
    From the Editor
    Blogs
    Guest Opinions
    Top Opinions
    OEMs Seek Molders Offering Timely Techniques

    Robotic Surgery: Cutting Through to the Latest

    Packaging, Sterilization Considerations Go Part and Parcel with Product Development

    Cybersecurity Challenges Leave Medical Device Makers Insecure

    OEMs Are Demanding Designs that Challenge Suppliers
    Top 30 Medical Device Companies
    Market Data
    White Papers
    Top Research
    Theranos Fraud Trial, Part II: The Blame Game Continues

    An Update on Surgical Robotics

    Letting the Light In: How Failure Analysis is the Cornerstone of Success

    Three Talent Strategies to Attract High-Demand Skills

    The Advantages of Bioburden Screening for Sterilization Validation
    3D/Additive Manufacturing
    Contract Manufacturing
    Electronics
    Machining & Laser Processing
    Materials
    Molding
    Packaging & Sterilization
    R&D & Design
    Software & IT
    Testing
    Tubing & Extrusion
    Cardiovascular
    Diagnostics
    Digital Health
    Neurological
    Patient Monitoring
    Surgical
    Orthopedics
    All Companies
    Categories
    Company Capabilities
    Add New Company
    Outsourcing Directory
    Concise Engineering

    BMP Medical

    JBC Technologies

    Cirtec Medical

    Trademark Plastics Inc.
    MPO Summit
    Industry Events
    Webinars
    Live From Show Event
    Industry Associations
    Videos
    Career Central
    eBook
    Slideshows
    Top Resources
    Investment in Health Startups Drops

    The Power of Leveraging Customer Relationships

    Cost Effective & Efficient Wire EDM Techniques

    How MedTech Professionals Can Help Combat Physician Burnout

    How to Optimize Manufacturing Lines and Choose Which Machines to Buy
    Companies
    News Releases
    Product Releases
    Press Releases
    Product Spec Sheets
    Service Releases
    Case Studies
    White Papers
    Brochures
    Videos
    Outsourcing Directory
    Concise Engineering

    BMP Medical

    JBC Technologies

    Cirtec Medical

    Trademark Plastics Inc.
    • Magazine
      • Current/Back Issues
      • Features
      • Editorial
      • Columns
      • Digital Editions
      • Subscribe Now
      • Advertise Now
    • News
    • Directory
      • All Companies
      • ALL CATEGORIES
      • Industry Associations
      • Company Capabilities
      • Add Your Company
    • Supply Chain
      • 3D/Additive Manufacturing
      • Contract Manufacturing
      • Electronics
      • Machining & Laser Processing
      • Materials
      • Molding
      • Packaging & Sterilization
      • R&D & Design
      • Software & IT
      • Testing
      • Tubing & Extrusion
    • Device Sectors
      • Cardiovascular
      • Diagnostics
      • Digital Health
      • Neurological
      • Patient Monitoring
      • Surgical
      • Orthopedics
    • Top 30 Company Report
    • Expert Insights
    • Slideshows
    • Videos
    • eBook
    • Resources
    • Podcasts
    • Infographics
    • Whitepapers
    • Research
      • White Papers
      • Case Studies
      • Product Spec Sheets
      • Market Data
    • MPO Summit
    • Events
      • Industry Events
      • Live From Show Events
      • Webinars
    • Microsite
      • Companies
      • Product Releases
      • Product Spec Sheets
      • Services
      • White Papers / Tech Papers
      • Press Releases
      • Videos
      • Literature / Brochures
      • Case Studies
    • About Us
      • About Us
      • Contact Us
      • Advertise with Us
      • eNewsletter Archive
      • Privacy Policy
      • Terms of Use
    Breaking News

    Sperm-Sorting 'Obstacle Course' Device Could Boost IVF Success

    May the best sperm win: SPARTAN obstacle course technology selects fastest and healthiest sperm for in vitro fertilization.

    Sperm-Sorting
    Related CONTENT
    • Deadline: March 2019—Don’t Get Shutout of Europe
    • 3D Printed Microfibers Could Speed Development of Artificially Grown Body Parts
    • CompactCath's Flagship Discreet Intermittent Urinary Catheter Awarded CE Mark
    • Biolase Appoints Biotechnology Entrepreneur to its Board of Directors
    • Medica By the Numbers
    Worcester Polytechnic Institute01.04.18
    Women undergoing in vitro fertilization (IVF) may become pregnant with fewer treatment cycles, thanks to a new device developed by a team of researchers from Worcester Polytechnic Institute (WPI) and Stanford University that uses an "obstacle course" to sort and select faster and healthier sperm cells for use in IVF treatment.
     
    This new device was created by a team co-led by Erkan Tüzel, associate professor of physics, biomedical engineering, and computer science at WPI, and Utkan Demirci, professor of radiology and electrical engineering (by courtesy) at Stanford University. The work was funded by two separate but collaborative grants from the National Science Foundation and was published in the most recent issue of Advanced Science, a high-impact, peer-reviewed scientific journal.
     
    The microfluidic device, which can be used in clinics, is dubbed SPARTAN, short for Simple Periodic ARray for Trapping And IsolatioN. It uses a field of three-dimensional posts that create an obstacle course for the swimming sperm cells. The strongest and healthiest sperm get through this array the fastest and then are collected at the outlet to be used in the IVF process.
    Traditional sperm-sorting methods used in IVF treatments select sperm that are the fastest swimmers. The SPARTAN device collects sperm that are the fastest and also the healthiest because it culls out those with malformations, such as bent necks or larger heads, which can slow their movement.
     
    "With SPARTAN, we not only get sperm with excellent motility, but also with normal morphology and better DNA integrity, helping families worldwide by reducing the stress of multiple IVF procedures, while potentially increasing pregnancy rates." said Tüzel. "This could increase patients' chances of getting pregnant."


    A close-up of a microfluidic sperm sorting device called SPARTAN (Simple Periodic ARray for Trapping And IsolatioN). The device uses a field of three-dimensional posts that create an obstacle course for swimming sperm cells. The layout of the posts assures that the fastest and healthiest sperm reach the output first, which improves the success of the IVF process. The design, co-developed by researchers at Worcester Polytechnic Institute (WPI) and Stanford University. Image courtesy of Worcester Polytechnic Institute.

     
    According to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, 12 percent of women in the United States between the ages of 15 and 44 deal with infertility issues. In that same age group, 7.3 million American women have used infertility services. And the National Institutes of Health reports that one-third of infertility cases are caused by male reproductive issues, while another third are caused by a combination of male and female reproductive issues or unknown causes.
     
    The SPARTAN device is about 4 millimeters wide and 12 to 16 millimeters long. Sperm are simply injected into one end and the fastest and healthiest are collected on the opposite end for immediate use in in vitro fertilization. The device also prevents the type of damage to cells that can occur with traditional sorting methods, such as those using high-force centrifuges. Because SPARTAN can be used in the fertility clinic, sperm do not need to be frozen and shipped to a lab for processing; the in-clinic sorting procedure takes between 5 and 30 minutes.
     
    This new sperm-sorting device also could mean that patients will spend less money overall on IVF treatments, which generally cost about $15,000 per cycle, because with the new sperm sorting technology they could be able to become pregnant without going through as many treatment cycles.
     
    Tüzel, who develops computational models of swimming organisms at the microscale, focused his part of the research on modeling the design of the SPARTAN device and used algorithms and fluid physics to model human sperm and how they move in such a complex environment. James Kingsley, a WPI graduate student pursuing a PhD in physics, worked with Tüzel on the project.
     
    Demirci's Stanford team created the overall experimental device designs based on Tüzel's theoretical models, fabricated and tested the prototypes, and determined the best experimental parameters and medium for the sperm cells to swim through the device.


    Erkan Tüzel, left, associate professor of physics, biomedical engineering, and computer science at Worcester Polytechnic Institute (WPI), and Ph.D. candidate James Kingsley examine a microfluidic sperm sorting device called SPARTAN (Simple Periodic ARray for Trapping And IsolatioN). Tüzel and Kingsley developed computational models that helped shape the design of the device, which was co-developed by Tüzel and researchers at Stanford University. The device uses a field of three-dimensional posts that create an obstacle course for swimming sperm cells. The layout of the posts assures that the fastest and healthiest sperm reach the output first, which improves the success of the IVF process. Image courtesy of Worcester Polytechnic Institute.

     
    "Our success was the result of our close collaboration, bringing theory and experiment together--WPI working with the Demirci Lab," said Tüzel. "And as a physicist, this is very exciting. We're going to have a product in the market helping people. That doesn't always happen in physics in such a short time frame, especially if you are a theoretical physicist."
     
    Demirci said the collaborative work enabled the research teams to create a new technology that can have a real impact at the clinic, potentially leading all the way to live births.
     
    "The collaboration between Erkan's lab and my lab is invaluable," he added. "WPI brings an outstanding theoretical tool that allows us to understand how microscale objects, such as sperm, interact with their environment; and we are able to design this know-how into real microfluidic devices, clinically validate what we designed, and experimentally improve it into a real-world application."
     
    DxNow, Inc., a Gaithersburg, Md.-based company that develops advanced microfluidic and imaging technologies, licensed the patent for SPARTAN from WPI and Stanford last September. The company plans to apply for FDA approval and expects to release the device for commercial use in July 2018.
    Related Searches
    • sperm
    • national science foundation
    • fda
    • fertilization
    Suggested For You
    Deadline: March 2019—Don’t Get Shutout of Europe Deadline: March 2019—Don’t Get Shutout of Europe
    3D Printed Microfibers Could Speed Development of Artificially Grown Body Parts 3D Printed Microfibers Could Speed Development of Artificially Grown Body Parts
    CompactCath CompactCath's Flagship Discreet Intermittent Urinary Catheter Awarded CE Mark
    Biolase Appoints Biotechnology Entrepreneur to its Board of Directors Biolase Appoints Biotechnology Entrepreneur to its Board of Directors
    Medica By the Numbers Medica By the Numbers
    Surmodics Enrolls First Patient in TRANSCEND Pivotal Clinical Trial for SurVeil Drug-Coated Balloon Surmodics Enrolls First Patient in TRANSCEND Pivotal Clinical Trial for SurVeil Drug-Coated Balloon
    University-Developed Mitral Valve Repair System Proven Safe & Effective University-Developed Mitral Valve Repair System Proven Safe & Effective
    Smartphone-Controlled Bandage Precisely Delivers Medication Smartphone-Controlled Bandage Precisely Delivers Medication
    Surmodics Announces Global Approvals of .014-Inch Low-Profile PTA Balloon Dilation Catheter Surmodics Announces Global Approvals of .014-Inch Low-Profile PTA Balloon Dilation Catheter
    New Microchip Technology Could Be Used to Track New Microchip Technology Could Be Used to Track 'Smart Pills'
    Tandem Diabetes Care Begins Enrollment in Pivotal Trial for First Touchscreen Insulin Pump Tandem Diabetes Care Begins Enrollment in Pivotal Trial for First Touchscreen Insulin Pump
    Improving Patient Care in the ICU Using Machine Learning Improving Patient Care in the ICU Using Machine Learning
    Surmodics Receives IDE Approval to Initiate Pivotal Trial of the SurVeil Drug-Coated Balloon Surmodics Receives IDE Approval to Initiate Pivotal Trial of the SurVeil Drug-Coated Balloon
    Biosensor Stimulates Sweat Even When Patient Is Resting and Cool Biosensor Stimulates Sweat Even When Patient Is Resting and Cool
    Bioengineered Patch Helps Cardiac Muscle Beat Stronger Post-Heart Attack Bioengineered Patch Helps Cardiac Muscle Beat Stronger Post-Heart Attack

    Related Online Exclusives

    • Contract Manufacturing | Machining & Laser Processing | Molding
      Deadline: March 2019—Don’t Get Shutout of Europe

      Deadline: March 2019—Don’t Get Shutout of Europe

      OEMs need to recognize if their suppliers will achieve EN ISO 13485:2016 certification in time.
      Leo Gelera, Quality Manager, FMI 12.21.17

    • 3D/Additive Manufacturing | Materials
      3D Printed Microfibers Could Speed Development of Artificially Grown Body Parts

      3D Printed Microfibers Could Speed Development of Artificially Grown Body Parts

      The printer can deposit a precise pattern of fibers in three dimensions to form a scaffold.
      Pennsylvania State University 12.13.17

    • CompactCath

      CompactCath's Flagship Discreet Intermittent Urinary Catheter Awarded CE Mark

      Clears the way for distribution of CompactCath in 28 countries across Europe.
      CompactCath 12.12.17


    • Biolase Appoints Biotechnology Entrepreneur to its Board of Directors

      Biolase Appoints Biotechnology Entrepreneur to its Board of Directors

      New member replacing retiring director.
      Business Wire 11.14.17

    • Medica By the Numbers

      Medica By the Numbers

      An analytical breakdown of visitors to the world's largest medical trade show.
      Messe Düsseldorf 11.12.17

    Loading, Please Wait..

    Trending
    • 5 Ways Plastics Revolutionized The Healthcare Industry
    • FDA OKs J&J Vision's AcuVue Oasys Max 1-Day Contact Lenses
    • How To Overcome The Top 6 Medical Device Manufacturing Challenges
    • Labcorp Launches At-Home Collection Device For Diabetes Risk Testing
    • Intermountain Healthcare & Siemens Healthineers Open 3 Tellica Outpatient Imaging Centers
    Breaking News
    • Cepheid, BioGX Partner to Create GeneXpert Monkeypox Test
    • Siemens' Varian Gains FDA IDE Nod for FAST-02 Trial
    • Acutus Medical Launches AcQCross Line Extension
    • Accelmed Partners II, Lauxera Capital Partners Invest in Veranex
    • Agnes Lee Named SVP of Investor Relations, Strategic Planning at Inogen
    View Breaking News >
    CURRENT ISSUE

    June 2022

    • OEMs Seek Molders Offering Timely Techniques
    • Robotic Surgery: Cutting Through to the Latest
    • Packaging, Sterilization Considerations Go Part and Parcel with Product Development
    • View More >

    Cookies help us to provide you with an excellent service. By using our website, you declare yourself in agreement with our use of cookies.
    You can obtain detailed information about the use of cookies on our website by clicking on "More information”.

    • About Us
    • Privacy Policy
    • Terms And Conditions
    • Contact Us

    follow us

    Subscribe
    Nutraceuticals World

    Latest Breaking News From Nutraceuticals World

    CoQ10 and Royal Jelly Supplementation May Improve High Intensity Exercise
    Shiitake Mushroom Extract Appears Helpful in HPV Infections
    Fi & Hi Europe Returns with Over 20,000 Global Attendees Expected
    Coatings World

    Latest Breaking News From Coatings World

    H.M. Royal Becomes Exclusive OCSiAl Distributor
    American Colors to Expand Sandusky, Ohio Facility
    Vaughn O’Dea Named Director of Epoxytec
    Medical Product Outsourcing

    Latest Breaking News From Medical Product Outsourcing

    Cepheid, BioGX Partner to Create GeneXpert Monkeypox Test
    Siemens' Varian Gains FDA IDE Nod for FAST-02 Trial
    Acutus Medical Launches AcQCross Line Extension
    Contract Pharma

    Latest Breaking News From Contract Pharma

    Ixaka & Minaris Sign Tech Transfer & GMP Manufacturing Agreement for Cell Therapy Candidate
    Pfizer, BioNTech Adapt COVID Vax Against Omicron
    CoreRx Expands Capabilities
    Beauty Packaging

    Latest Breaking News From Beauty Packaging

    Top 5 Beauty Tech Trends at Perfect Corp.'s Global Forum
    John Frieda Supports the LGBTQIA+ Community
    Athena Club Launches in Canada
    Happi

    Latest Breaking News From Happi

    Fencing Champion Bebe Vio Grandis Named Spokeswoman of L’Oréal Paris
    Past Henkel Exec Christian Chopra Named President of Scotch Porter
    Color Street Celebrates Foster, Adoption Awareness with Limited-Edition Print
    Ink World

    Latest Breaking News From Ink World

    Dr. Tammo Boinowitz to Join Management Board of ALTANA AG
    Flint Offset Packaging Solutions Announces Price Increases for Sheetfed Inks
    Weekly Recap: INX’s VC Fund, Screen Industry and Ball Top This Week’s News
    Label & Narrow Web

    Latest Breaking News From Label & Narrow Web

    Harveer Sahni recognized with Global Achievement Award
    Color-Logic partners with Taktiful 
    ALTANA announces Management Board change
    Nonwovens Industry

    Latest Breaking News From Nonwovens Industry

    Fibertex Personal Care Awarded EcoVadis Awards for Sustainability
    Yanpai Orders Batt Forming Equipment for Needlepunch Line
    Weekly Recap: SWM and Neenah Introduce Mativ Inc., Avgol honored for Biotransformation Technology & More
    Orthopedic Design & Technology

    Latest Breaking News From Orthopedic Design & Technology

    Researchers Discover Novel Patching Material for Bone Defects
    Boston Centerless Opens Second Manufacturing Plant in Indiana
    Researchers Develop Patient-Specific 3D-Printed Smart Metamaterial Implants
    Printed Electronics Now

    Latest Breaking News From Printed Electronics Now

    Identiv-Powered CVS Spoken Rx Wins NFC Forum 2022 Innovation Award
    LG Display Announces Winners of This Year’s OLEDs GO! Competition
    Weekly Recap: eMagin, Applied Materials, and Schott Top This Week’s Stories

    Copyright © 2022 Rodman Media. All rights reserved. Use of this constitutes acceptance of our privacy policy The material on this site may not be reproduced, distributed, transmitted, or otherwise used, except with the prior written permission of Rodman Media.

    AD BLOCKER DETECTED

    Our website is made possible by displaying online advertisements to our visitors.
    Please consider supporting us by disabling your ad blocker.


    FREE SUBSCRIPTION Already a subscriber? Login