Gamete intrafallopian transfer or GIFT is an assisted reproductive technology. It helps those couples in having a child who cannot conceive due to infertility disorders.
In GIFT, the ovum collected from the donor or the woman herself is mixed with sperms and is transferred to the fallopian tube of the recipient or ownself. It is used in the cases where a female is unable to produce an ovum but can provide a proper environment for fertilisation or in case of sperm dysfunction.
GIFT Method
Steptoe and Edwards first performed this procedure, and later Ricardo Asch pioneered the GIFT technique. In GIFT, the ovum is kept along with the sperm inside the fallopian tube such that the fertilisation takes place inside the body. It takes four to six weeks for the complete GIFT procedure.
- First, fertility drugs are administered to induce ovulation.
- The development of ovarian follicles is monitored, and on maturation, human chorionic gonadotropin (hCG) is given.
- The egg is harvested and mixed with sperms and placed back into the fallopian tube of the female by laparoscopy.
- Fertilisation takes place inside the fallopian tube.
Some of the important points regarding GIFT are as follows:
- One of the two fallopian tubes should be functional for this procedure.
- It is used in cases where a female is unable to produce an egg but is able to continue with fertilisation and pregnancy. It is also used in cases of mild male infertility.
- It is not in-vitro fertilisation (IVF) because fertilisation takes place inside the fallopian tube.
- It requires laparoscopy to put the egg back; hence it is semi-invasive.
- The success rate is 25-30%. The success rate depends on the age of the couple and the quality of the ovum and sperms.
With the advent of in-vitro fertilisation (IVF), GIFT is used less, as the IVF success rate is good and it does not require laparoscopy. Other assisted reproductive techniques are ZIFT– zygote intrafallopian transfer, embryo transfer (ET), intracytoplasmic sperm injection (ICSI), IUI – intrauterine insemination, etc.
This was all about the Gamete Intrafallopian Transfer. Explore notes on other important concepts related to NEET, only at BYJU’S.
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