Fourth Baby Born in 14 Months Using the Maternal Spindle Transfer Method as Part of Pilot Trial Conducted by the Institute of Life and Embryotools Scientific Team

ATHENS, Greece, June 30, 2020 /PRNewswire/ -- Within 14 months from the birth of the first baby, three more babies have been born using the maternal spindle transfer method, as part of the pilot trial conducted by the scientific team of the Institute of Life and Embryotools in Greece.

The fourth baby was born at 10:40 am on June 20, 2020, at IASO Hospital, to a Greek mother with a long history of multiple IVF failures. Both the mother and the infant are in very good health.

Attending obstetrician/gynecology surgeon Dr. Georgios Pistofidis issued the following statement: "The greatest satisfaction for a doctor is to overcome complex medical issues. This woman had undergone six failed IVF cycles and four unsuccessful embryo transfers, while her embryos had never reached the blastocyst stage. In the context of the ongoing maternal spindle transfer pilot trial, she managed to give birth to a baby with her own genetic material during the very first embryo transfer."

In a joint statement, Dr. Nuno Costa-Borges, Co-Founder of Embryotools, and Mr. Eros Nikitos, Director of the IASO Institute of Life Embryology Lab, said: "A total of 25 women are participating in the pilot trial and 4 babies have already been born, which are being closely monitored based on a special pediatric protocol, and they are all well health-wise. Another pregnancy is at an advanced stage. We are very satisfied with the results so far. We keep processing the latest medical data arising from our pilot trial daily and significant scientific publications will follow shortly."

About the Maternal Spindle Transfer Pilot Trial

The maternal spindle transfer pilot trial involves mitochondrial replacement in human oocytes, fully preserving the genetic material of the woman who wants to reproduce. In this way, in the context of the pilot trial being carried out by the Institute of Life and Embryotools, the scientific team is researching the potential of addressing the problems of women with fertility issues and multiple IVF failures caused by cytoplasmic dysfunctions of their oocytes, and the potential of addressing serious mitochondrial diseases.

Important Note:

Births of children using the maternal spindle transfer method are performed in the context of an ongoing research protocol concerning a pilot trial that leads to pregnancy, which is conducted in accordance with the terms and conditions of Law 3305/2005. Based on current scientific findings, the maternal spindle transfer method is not an established infertility treatment, nor a recognized method of medically assisted reproduction.

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SOURCE Institute of Life