Recent Microfluidic Innovations for Sperm Sorting

Abstract

Sperm selection is a clinical need for guided fertilization in men with low-quality semen. In this regard, microfluidics can provide an enabling platform for the precise manipulation and separation of high-quality sperm cells through applying various stimuli, including chemical agents, mechanical forces, and thermal gradients. In addition, microfluidic platforms can help to guide sperms and oocytes for controlled in vitro fertilization or sperm sorting using both passive and active methods. Herein, we present a detailed review of the use of various microfluidic methods for sorting and categorizing sperms for different applications. The advantages and disadvantages of each method are further discussed and future perspectives in the field are given.

Green assessment of polymer microparticles production processes: a critical review

“…138 In the last two decades, innovative microfluidic technology has been the scope of extensive studies 34,139,140 and diverse applications. For example, microfluidic techniques have been proved to be very efficient in assisted reproductive technologies, 141 bacterial separation and preconcentration, 142 DNA compaction, 143 and fungus identification. 144 Microfluidics has emerged as an efficient technique for producing liposomes and nanoparticles 145 and is important in the production of controlled-size polymer microparticles.…”

Electrically-driven handling of gametes and embryos: taking a step towards the future of ARTs

“…[49][50][51][52][53][54][55][56][57][58][59][60][61] Due to the high compatibility of sperm for its manipulation within microstructures, a plethora of such chips solely for the collection, handling and analysis of semen have been proposed and discussed. [62][63][64][65][66][67][68][69][70][71] Examples of microfluidic chips developed for the in vitro processing of oocytes, 72,73 sperm cells 74,75 and the culture of embryos 76 are presented in Fig. 2.…”

Disposable paper-based microfluidics for fertility testing

“…While employing such complex systems would require rethinking the design of portable microfluidic platforms, which may lead to additional cost of extra materials and tools, test results would be highly accurate in return. Further improvement in this field should be directed into minimizing the time needed to prepare and manipulate the sample by combining multiple preparation steps together and automating the overall process as much as possible ( Khodamoradi et al., 2021 ; Rezapour Sarabi et al., 2022a ).…”