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Researchers report success with sex-selection method
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| With this technique of cell sorting, it takes a full day to separate one sperm sample | |
Web posted at: 12:28 p.m. EDT (1628 GMT)
(CNN) -- Researchers said Wednesday they are able to help couples choose the sex of their babies by using a sperm-sorting technique followed by artificial insemination.
Doctors at the Genetics and IVF Institute in Fairfax, Virginia, said they have been able to separate sperms cells containing X chromosomes and sperm cells containing Y chromosomes by measuring the amount of genetic material each cell contains.
Sperm carrying the Y chromosome, which produces males, have about 2.8 percent less DNA than sperm with the X chromosome, which produces females.
The institute said its method has created sperm samples in which 85 percent of sperm had an X chromosome and samples in which 65 percent have a Y chromosome.
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Research scientist Edward Fugger explains the benefits of the
process 280K/22 sec. AIFF or WAV sound |
Researchers say the new technology could benefit couples who want family balance and couples at risk for sex-linked genetic diseases.
"This has been a technology that researchers have searched for, for decades," said lead researcher Dr. Edward F. Fugger. "This technology -- obviously, in the prevention of sexual and genetic diseases -- allows couples to have unaffected offspring that they otherwise possibly would not be able to have."
The announcement is expected to draw widespread criticism from those who view sex selection efforts as unethical.
'Micro sort' procedure
The procedure used by Fugger's team is called flow cytometric separation of X and Y chromosome-bearing sperm cells, or, more simply, "micro sort."
The researchers' separation method involves shining a laser light on sperm DNA stained with fluorescent dye. The sperm is then sifted using a cell sorter. Each sperm's DNA is then measured.
The technique is time-consuming; it takes almost a full day to separate one sperm sample.
The research, which is published in the journal Human Reproduction, reports that, so far, patients using the method to isolate X chromosomes have given birth to 11 babies, 10 of them female. Figures for male births have not been released.
The paper reported results for couples who wanted girls. Of the 14 pregnancies advanced enough to determine the sex of the fetus, 13 were female.
"This gives the couple a five to six times increased chance of having a daughter than having a son," Fugger said. "From the standpoint of individuals making reproductive choices about their families, this provides them that opportunity."
Dr. Joseph Schulman, director of the Genetics & IVF Institute, told The New York Times that most parents wanted to choose a certain sex for "family balancing."
He said the institute is not currently offering the selection method to childless couples who want to choose the sex of their first-born.
The Associated Press contributed to this report.
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