Scientists will test this AI tool against embryologists to see how quickly the technology can identify sperm and how accurate it is. Here’s what the researchers discovered:
Tuesday 27 June 2023 15:37 UK
A new artificial intelligence (AI) tool could identify sperm in infertile men in just seconds, a study suggests.
This study was conducted to test whether AI could speed up the treatment process for men whose semen does not contain sperm.
Some patients now undergo a treatment called intracytoplasmic sperm injection (ICSI), in which part of the testicle is removed and sperm is manually extracted from a biopsy sample by an embryologist to fertilize the partner’s egg. I’m here.
The treatment can take up to six hours to find and separate sperm within human tissue, but a team of scientists at the University of Technology said sydney We’ve been looking at ways to speed up that process.
How was your research done?
Using AI software installed on a computer, the research team conducted the study in two phases over a period of five months at an IVF clinic in Sydney.
The researchers decided to guide an AI tool called SpermSearch to display thousands of static photomicrographs.
The images showed sperm as well as high levels of other cells and debris, but only the sperm were highlighted.
By having the AI tool learn, it has become possible to learn the state of sperm through image analysis using a unique evaluation system that checks and adjusts sperm performance.
Lead author Dale Goss and his team used healthy sperm and testicular tissue samples from seven patients aged 36 to 55.
Some participants had been diagnosed with non-obstructive azoospermia (NOA) and had already undergone surgical sperm retrieval at the clinic.
The men donated tissue left over from treatments that had been prepared for sperm retrieval but were not needed.
AI tools take the lead
AI tools then went head-to-head with embryologists who were believed to be 100% accurate.
To find the best results, the researchers compared how long it takes to identify sperm and how accurate it is.
Scientists were able to prove that AI found more sperm overall.
The AI tool was able to find 611 sperm, while the embryologist found 560.
The study authors said the algorithm was able to identify sperm in each region of droplets they observed in less than 1,000 times the time it took embryologists.
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The research team therefore concluded that AI is more accurate and accurate in identifying sperm.
In a conference presentation at the European Society for Human Reproduction and Development, the authors said the study was based on a proof-of-concept study and that clinical trials are needed to understand things better.
The researchers also said such studies should be conducted on men with other forms of severe infertility who have undergone other surgical approaches, such as harvesting sperm from different parts of the testicles. rice field.
Goss said the tool has the ability for people to “increase their chances of having biological children.”
“This algorithm improves on an outdated approach that hasn’t been updated in decades,” he said.
“Not only will the ability to quickly identify sperm in a sample increase the chances of a couple conceiving a biological child, but it will also reduce the stress on the sperm and improve the efficiency of the lab.”
