Question

Describe the techniques that can help a healthy married woman who is unable to produce viable ova but want to bear a child.

Answer 1

Following techniques can help this married woman -

• Transfer of an ovum collected from a donor into the fallopian tube (GIFT – gamete intrafallopian transfer) of this married female who cannot produce one, but can provide a suitable environment for fertilization and further development.
• In vitro fertilization (IVF–fertilisation outside the body in almost similar conditions as that in the body) followed by embryo transfer (ET). In this method, popularly known as test tube baby programme, ova from the wife/donor (female) and sperms from the husband/donor (male) are collected and are induced to form zygote under simulated conditions in the laboratory. The zygote or early embryos (with up to 8 blastomeres) could then be transferred into the fallopian tube (ZIFT–zygote intrafallopian transfer) and embryos with more than 8 blastomeres, into the uterus (IUT – intrauterine transfer), to complete its further development. Embryos formed by in-vivo fertilisation (fusion of gametes within the female) also could be used for such transfer to assist those females who cannot conceive.