Studies Demonstrate Accuracy Of Novel, Metabolomic Profiling Technology In Predicting Reproductive Potential Of Embryos For IVF

Molecular Biometrics, Inc. recently presented the latest of a series of papers demonstrating that metabolomic profiling of spent embryo culture media correlates closely with the reproductive potential of embryos in women undergoing in vitro fertilization (IVF). The findings from these most recent studies were presented at the 64th annual meeting of the American Society for Reproductive Medicine (ASRM). The first study, "Glutamate levels in embryo culture media determined by proton nuclear magnetic resonance (1H NMR) metabolomics correlates with reproductive potential on day 3 embryos in ART," is a candidate for ASRM's Prize Paper award.

"These data clearly demonstrate that there is a direct connection between specific metabolites produced by an embryo, which are absorbed into the culture media, and reflect the embryo's reproductive potential," said Emre Seli, MD, PhD, Yale University, Yale Fertility Center, and lead author of the study. "These data further support the use of biospectroscopy-based metabolomic profiling as a rapid, non-invasive technology that is showing great promise in more precisely estimating the reproductive potential of individual embryos, thus improving upon current embryo grading systems."

Researchers from Yale University School of Medicine demonstrated that, using proton nuclear magnetic resonance (NMR) spectroscopy, metabolomics can predict the viability or reproductive potential of individual embryos with a sensitivity of 88.2% and a specificity of 88.2%. Proton NMR spectroscopy is a non-invasive technique that can identify and characterize metabolites (small molecules produced by cell metabolism).

Spent culture media samples from embryos that failed to implant following IVF,and samples from embryos that resulted in pregnancy were individually collected after embryo transfer on day three and evaluated using proton nuclear magnetic resonance. The researchers demonstrated that levels of glutamate – a key molecule in cellular metabolism – were higher in the culture media of embryos that resulted in pregnancy.

"These data provide further evidence that metabolomic technology can be used to provide a more accurate assessment of embryo viability," said James T. Posillico, PhD, President and Chief Executive Officer, Molecular Biometrics. "These data also confirm that there are specific metabolic changes that produce biological signals or ‘biomarkers' that can be detected non-invasively in spent culture media. Our metabolomic profiling technology is an elegant tool that can detect combinations of these subtle changes, including those identified in the current study."

Metabolomic Profiling of Blastocyst Culture
In a second study presented at ASRM, "Non-invasive metabolic profiling of day 5 embryo culture media adds to the discriminatory power of blastocyst culture for single embryo transfer," authored by Thorir Hardarson, PhD, et al, Department of Obstetrics and Gynecology, Göteborg University, Gothenburg, Sweden, researchers demonstrated that metabolic profiling has the potential to achieve an overall pregnancy rate using single embryo transfer (SET) of greater than 70%. This further demonstrates that metabolomic profiling using near infrared (NIR) biospectroscopy can help differentiate between viable and non-viable day five embryos. This is especially important given that an embryo's metabolism and viability may vary widely, independent of its morphology.

Metabolomics at Molecular Biometrics
Metabolomics is a complex scientific process that identifies and measures individual signals from many small molecular compounds produced by cellular metabolism which, when evaluated as a whole, represent unique biomarkers of biologic function in health and disease.

Molecular Biometrics uses NIR biospectroscopy in its metabolomic applications. NIR is a robust platform that rapidly measures the vibrational energy produced by small molecule functional groups, creating a profile of molecules that are reflective of cellular function and viability.

The spectral signatures are further analyzed by proprietary bioinformatics and chemometrics that result in the creation of a novel "metabolomic profile" or "fingerprint" that can be used to systematically distinguish between the often subtle differences that separate normal physiology from the onset or progression of disease, or an individual's response to therapeutic intervention. Metabolomics is commonly used in pharmaceutical research, molecular diagnostics and food and agrichemical industries.

About Molecular Biometrics
Molecular Biometrics, Inc. is applying novel metabolomic technologies to develop accurate, non-invasive clinical tools for use in personalized medicine to evaluate normal biologic function in health and in disease, and for drug discovery and development. The company's proprietary technology is being applied in reproductive health, IVF and neurodegenerative disease (e.g., Parkinson's disease). Molecular Biometrics is headquartered in Chester, NJ, with research and development facilities in New Haven, CT, and Montreal, Quebec. For more information, please visit www.molecularbiometrics.com.

SOURCE: Molecular Biometrics, Inc.