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Updated: Oct 1, 2026
Laser-assisted Lentiviral Gene Delivery to Mouse Fertilized Eggs
Published on: November 1, 2018
Noncontact, laser-mediated extraction of polar bodies for prefertilization genetic diagnosis
A Clement-Sengewald1, T Buchholz, K Schütze
11st Women's Hospital, Ludwig-Maximilians-University, Munich, Germany. a-s@sengewald.m.uunet.de
Purpose:
We tested an entirely noncontact polar body-extraction method using an ultraviolet laser beam for laser zona drilling and a near infrared laser beam for polar body (PB) trapping and extraction.
Methods:
A hole was drilled into the zona pellucida of an oocyte. Then, the PB was trapped with optical tweezers and dragged through the drilled hole.
Results:
Bovine first PBs could be extracted in 49 out of 63 oocytes (78%) using this method. In human oocytes, PB extraction was successfully demonstrated, which however was more time consuming. A number of extracted PBs were dried on a special membrane, circumcised with the laser microbeam, and successfully catapulted into the lid of a microfuge tube (laser pressure catapulting).
Conclusions:
This solely laser-mediated extraction method allows convenient procurement of PBs without the danger of contamination and is a promising approach that might replace standard micromanipulation methods in the future.
