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Sex distribution in arrested precompacted human embryos

S Munné¹, Y X Tang, H U Weier

¹Center for Reproductive Medicine and Infertility, New York Hospital-Cornell University Center, NY 10021.

Zygote (Cambridge, England)

|May 1, 1993

Summary

The sex chromosomes do not control the early development rate of human embryos. The first developmental block in human embryos occurs before genomic activation and is not Y chromosome-dependent.

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Area of Science:

Embryology
Reproductive Biology
Genetics

Background:

Accumulating evidence suggests male mammal embryos develop faster than females, indicating potential sex dimorphism before gonadal differentiation.
The role of sex chromosomes in early human embryo development remains unclear.

Purpose of the Study:

To investigate whether sex chromosomes influence the developmental rate of pre-compaction human embryos.
To determine if the Y chromosome affects early human embryo development.

Main Methods:

Sex determination using polymerase chain reaction (PCR) and fluorescence in situ hybridization (FISH).
Analysis of 172 arrested human embryos from in vitro fertilization (IVF).
Assessment of embryo fragmentation and nuclear status.

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Main Results:

The overall sex ratio of embryos was approximately 1:1 (1.02:0.98), not significantly different from parity.
No significant difference in sex ratio was observed between highly fragmented and normal embryos (1.08:0.92).
Arrested female embryos showed a non-significant tendency towards more than five nuclei and less than 10% fragmentation.

Conclusions:

Early human embryo development, particularly the first developmental block, is not determined by the presence of the Y chromosome.
The observed developmental patterns suggest the initial embryonic block occurs before or shortly after genomic activation, independent of sex chromosomes.