Pregnancies achieved by assisted reproduction technologies, particularly by intracytoplasmic sperm injection (ICSI) procedures, are susceptible to genetic risks inherent to the male population treated with ICSI and additional risks inherent to this innovative procedure. The documented, as well as the theoretical, risks are discussed in the present review study. These risks mainly represent that consequences of the genetic abnormalities underlying male subfertility (or infertility) and might become stimulators for the development of novel approaches and applications in the treatment of infertility. In addition, risks with a polygenic background appearing at birth as congenital anomalies and other theoretical or stochastic risks are discussed. Recent data suggest that assisted reproductive technology might also affect epigenetic characteristics of the male gamete, the female gamete, or might have an impact on early embryogenesis. It might be also associated with an increased risk for genomic imprinting abnormalities.
This review refers to the evolution of ooplasmic injections of round spermatid nuclei (ROSNI) or intact round spermatids (ROSI). Conclusions from their preliminary application in the hamster, rabbit, mouse and human are discussed. Criteria for identification of round spermatids and guidelines/quality control for application of ROSNI/ROSI techniques are emphasized. Although all the animal offspring and the human newborns delivered after ROSNI/ROSI are healthy, additional research efforts are necessary to confirm the safety of these procedures and improve their outcome.
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