Metabolomic determination in assisted reproductive technology

Abstract

The present invention relates to a method for determining the ideal time for and outcome of reproductive health procedures including in vitro fertilization by establishing a correlation between the successful outcome of said procedure and the spectra of a body fluid obtained using a chosen analytical modality for a population of patients, acquiring for a patient a spectrum of the body fluid of the patient using said chosen modality.

Description

CROSS REFERENCE TO RELATED APPLICATIONS[0001]This application claims priority on provisional application Ser. No. 60 / 757,242, filed Jan. 9, 2006, the disclosure of which is herein incorporated by reference.TECHNICAL FIELD[0002]The present invention relates to determining a state of a cell exchanging metabolites with a fluid medium by analyzing the metabolites in the fluid medium, and to uses thereof.BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTIONMetabolomics[0003]With the completion of the sequencing of the human genome, it has become apparent that genetic information alone is incapable of providing a comprehensive characterization of the biochemical and cellular functioning of complex biological systems. As a result, the focus of much molecular biological research is shifting toward proteomics and metabolomics, broadly defined as the systematic analysis of proteins and small molecules such as polypeptides, hormones and neurotransmitters (and their metabolites) in a physiological environment such as a ...

AI Technical Summary

Benefits of technology

[0013]Various forms of biospectroscopic analysis have been shown to be useful for non-invasive, in-vivo monitoring of several tissues, organs and fluids. In vitro analysis of solid tissue, individual cells and biological fluids is also performed using this methodology. Biospectroscopy has many advantages, including simplicity, accuracy and specificity, ease of use, rapid analysis, low-cost instrumentation, simultaneous measurement of multiple analytes in a single specimen, and the advantage of continuous, real-time monitoring by either point-of-care or remote analysis. Using the BSM platform, one can now perform high speed, sophisticated metabolomic analysis in less than one minute with liquid samples as small as 20 microliters, using a small device.

[0014]Metabolomics is a valuable extension of a growing understanding of the interplay of genes and proteins. The medical and scientific communities are now realizing that genomics, transcriptomics and proteomics are just a small part of homeostasis. While the genome is representative of what might be, and the proteome defines what has been expressed, it is the metabolome that represents the real-time functional status of the cell, tissue, organ or individual with respect to health and disease. The cumulative effects of all the “downstream events” of expressed proteins and protein modifications are represented in a pool of small molecules that reflect the cell's functional status. Profiling this molecular inventory (the metabolome) provides a correlate of a cell's health, disease, aging and the effects of drugs and xenobiotics in its environment. Thus, the ability to capture this information offers technological advancement to molecular diagnostics, prognostics and drug discovery across several scientific disciplines. It offers the practitioner invaluable decision making capability in multiple clinical settings.

[0015]The scope of reproductive health includes normal reproductive function as well as reproductive failure and infertility. Metabolomic profiling of biomarkers in the field of reproductive health, and more particularly in assisted reproductive technologies (ART) has not been explored. It has been discovered that biomarker profiling may be used to reliably to identify viable, biologically competent oocytes, sperm, and embryos in order to enhance treatment outcomes (pregnancy) in in vitro fertilization (IVF) procedures as well as reduce the risk of multiple births by allowing judicious pre-selection of fewer, but only viable, embryos for transfer.

[0040]In other embodiments, the invention provides an assisted reproductive technology (ART) method. This method comprises analytically testing the endometrial fluid of a uterus of a patient to determine a viability of the uterus for implantation of an embryo, and determining a time of implantation using the viability. For example, if the viability is weak, the testing is repeated, and the time of implantation is determined when the viability is stronger. For example, at least one of dietary, rest / exercise, and medicinal intervention can be provided to the patient to improve the viability.

Problems solved by technology

With the completion of the sequencing of the human genome, it has become apparent that genetic information alone is incapable of providing a comprehensive characterization of the biochemical and cellular functioning of complex biological systems.

Because proteins and metabolites are far more numerous, diverse, and fragile than genes, existing tools for their discovery, identification, and quantification do not meet the needs of researchers or clinicians.

Visual appearance of these cells does not correlate well with viability in many cases.

No other information about what is going on in the cells is available to ART specialists to guide the process.

While genetic testing of embryos by extracting one cell is possible to determine at least some factors of viability, such an “invasive” procedure can adversely affect the embryo.

No technique presently exists that allows embryologists and other ART specialists to efficiently assess the viability of these cells for ART procedures.

Today there are no practical biological criteria or analytical methods enabling selection of oocyte, sperm, or embryo to ensure efficacy or safety of the IVF procedure.

Consequently, with no analytical methodologies available to reliably assess oocyte competency at the front end of the IVF procedure, embryologists have resorted to subjective and non-standardized embryo development criteria and morphology as indicators of embryo quality and, by inference, original oocyte quality.

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