Pregnancy after the Calcium Ionophore Activation and Aneuploid Screening Using A-CGH in Globozoospermia Patient

Objective: To report a successful pregnancy after transfer of embryos derived from oocytes activated by calcium ionophore after intracytoplasmic sperm injection (ICSI) with round-headed sperms and aneuploid screening using aCGH. Design: Case report Setting: Private IVF clinic. Patient: A 28-year-old patients and her 31-year-old husband, diagnosed with 100% globozoospermia, underwent ICSI, oocyte activation and chromosome screening using a-CGH. Intervention: Ten metaphase II oocytes were injected with round-headed sperms. After ICSI, the oocytes were treated with 10 μM calcium ionophore solution for 20 minutes at 37◦C in 6% CO2. The fertilization was checked 18 hours later. On morning of day 3, one blastomere was biopsied from embryos which had at least 6 cells and sent to the genetic lab for aneuploid screening using a-CGH. Two euploid embryos were transfer on the fifth day after oocyte retrieval. Supernumerary normal embryos were vitrified for future use. Main Outcome Measure: Ongoing pregnancy after transfer of embryos after calcium ionophore activation and aCGH screening. Results: This couple experienced only 12% fertilization after ICSI in their first cycle. On the second cycle, 8 out of 10 metaphase II oocytes were fertilized after ICSI and calcium ionophore activation immediately after ICSI. 6 out of 8 embryos were diagnosed as euploid. Two normal blastocysts were chosen for transfer. Clinical pregnancy was confirmed at 7 weeks of gestation with two heartbeats. Two healthy babies were born. Conclusion: Artificial oocyte activation using calcium ionophore is beneficial in patients with globozoospermia. This study showed that the method of oocyte activation does not affect chromosome constitution and the normal growth of preimplantation embryos. Further studies are needed to confirm the safety of oocyte activation in born babies.