The Potential of Nanotechnology in Medically Assisted Reproduction

Abstract

Reproductive medicine is a field of science which searches for new alternatives not only to help couples achieve pregnancy and preserve fertility, but also to diagnose and treat diseases which can impair the normal operation of the reproductive tract. Assisted reproductive technology (ART) is a set of methodologies applied to cases related to infertility. Despite being highly practiced worldwide, ART presents some challenges, which still require special attention. Nanotechnology, as a tool for reproductive medicine, has been considered to help overcome some of those impairments. Over recent years, nanotechnology approaches applied to reproductive medicine have provided strategies to improve diagnosis and increase specificity and sensitivity. For in vitro embryo production, studies in non-human models have been used to deliver molecules to gametes and embryos. The exploration of nanotechnology for ART would bring great advances. In this way, experiments in non-human models to test the development and safety of new protocols using nanomaterials are very important for informing potential future employment in humans. This paper presents recent developments in nanotechnology regarding impairments still faced by ART: ovary stimulation, multiple pregnancy, and genetic disorders. New perspectives for further use of nanotechnology in reproductive medicine studies are also discussed.

Magnetic Hybrid Wax Nanocomposites as Externally Controlled Theranostic Vehicles: High MRI Enhancement and Synergistic Magnetically Assisted Thermo/Chemo Therapy

“…The upsurge of nanotechnology some years ago opened a plethora of opportunities in many fields. An area that has been proposed to benefit strongly from a nanoscience approach is Medicine . One of the entry points of nanotechnology into hospitals was in the form of magnetic nanoparticles (MNPs) as contrast agents (CAs) for magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) .…”

Enhanced delivery of melatonin loaded nanostructured lipid carriers duringin vitrofertilization: NLC formulation, optimization and IVF efficacy

“…2 Despite widespread progress in ART, the use of these methods has been limited due to a number of problems. [2][3][4] The in vitro maturation (IVM) process may be hindered by the excessive generation of reactive oxygen species (ROS). These molecules include free radicals, peroxides and oxygen ions, which are highly reactive.…”

Applications of omics and nanotechnology to improve pig embryo production in vitro

“…Most reports have explored the use of nanomaterials for the detection and therapy of reproductive cancers and noncancer conditions, such as uterine leiomyoma (Shalaby et al, ) and endometriosis (Liu et al, ; Zhao et al, ). However, a growing number of studies have applied nanotechnology in reproductive biology to target and sort specific populations of gametes and to optimize gene transfer and editing methodologies (Barkalina, Charalambous, Jones, & Coward, ; Remião et al, ). In addition, nanoparticulated systems have shown great potential as carriers to deliver molecules into gametes and embryos to improve their developmental competence in vitro (Barkalina, Charalambous, et al, ; Barkalina et al, ; Komninou et al, ; Lucas et al, ; Remião et al, ).…”

“…However, a growing number of studies have applied nanotechnology in reproductive biology to target and sort specific populations of gametes and to optimize gene transfer and editing methodologies (Barkalina, Charalambous, Jones, & Coward, 2014;Remião et al, 2017). In addition, nanoparticulated systems have shown great potential as carriers to deliver molecules into gametes and embryos to improve their developmental competence in vitro (Barkalina, Charalambous, et al, 2014;Komninou et al, 2016;Lucas et al, 2015;Remião et al, 2016).…”

“…These systems are able to pass through biological barriers and target selected pathways (Barkalina, Jones, Kashir, et al, 2014). The growing number of nanomaterials exhibiting biocompatibility with gametes and embryos have created diverse applications for the reproductive field (Barkalina, Jones, & Coward, 2016;Kim et al, 2018;Remião et al, 2017). Besides the use as nanocarriers for intragamete/embryo delivery of supplements, other significant applications of nanotechnology to the swine industry and biomedical science could be the delivery of exogenous DNA to sperm cells (Barkalina et al, 2016;Campos et al, 2011) and the delivery of Cas9 or sgRNA plasmids for gene editing (Wang et al, 2018).…”