Related Experiment Video
Updated: Nov 8, 2025
09:16
U-Shaped Horizontal Swimming Technique for Preparing High-Quality Sperm with Low DNA Fragmentation Index
Published on: March 28, 2025
414
High efficiency rare sperm separation from biopsy samples in an inertial focusing device
Haidong Feng1, Alex Jafek, Raheel Samuel
1State of Utah Center of Excellence for Biomedical Microfluidics, Department of Mechanical Engineering, University of Utah, Salt Lake City, Utah 84112, USA. bruce.gale@utah.edu.
The Analyst
|April 19, 2021
Summary
This study introduces a novel method for isolating immotile sperm from biopsy samples, significantly improving sperm retrieval rates for infertility treatment. The new process enhances the chances of finding sperm by 8.2-fold, aiding in fertility diagnostics.
Area of Science:
- Reproductive Biology
- Biomedical Engineering
- Cellular Mechanics
Background:
- Infertility affects a significant portion of the population, with sperm retrieval from biopsy samples being a critical step in assisted reproductive technologies.
- Traditional methods for sperm isolation from biopsy specimens are labor-intensive, time-consuming, and yield low recovery rates, posing a challenge for effective infertility treatment.
- The need for efficient and high-throughput sperm separation techniques is paramount for improving the success rates of fertility treatments.
Purpose of the Study:
- To develop and validate a high-throughput, high-recovery sperm separation process for clinical biopsy samples.
- To investigate the underlying physical principles of sperm separation using inertial focusing in a spiral channel.
- To enhance the efficiency of rare sperm isolation from complex biological mixtures.
Main Methods:
- Utilized a spiral channel device to exploit differences in inertial focusing positions between sperm and non-sperm cells.
- Investigated the sperm alignment phenomenon in inertial flow to optimize separation parameters.
- Applied the developed method to clinical biopsy samples for rare sperm isolation.
Main Results:
- Achieved a 95.6% sperm recovery rate with 87.4% removal of non-sperm cells.
- Demonstrated an 8.2-fold increase in the probability of finding sperm in treated clinical biopsy samples.
- Identified sperm alignment as a key factor in differential focusing and separation.
Conclusions:
- The proposed spiral channel device offers a rapid and efficient method for sperm sorting from clinical biopsy samples, significantly improving retrieval rates.
- The underlying mechanism of inertial focusing and sperm alignment is effective for high-efficiency separation of non-sperm cells.
- This technology holds great potential for advancing infertility treatment by providing a more effective means of sperm isolation.
