Preimplantation genetic testing

Recent developments in molecular and cellular genetic techniques, enable couples to have healthy children, free from genetic and chromosomal abnormalities. The genetic material, which is transmitted from one generation to the other, and required for the normal development of every organism, is organized in special structures, the chromosomes, in the nucleus of each cell.
About 50% of automatically aborted embryos have chromosomal abnormalities. Numerical chromosomal abnormalities are associated with human genetic syndromes such as, for instance, trisomy 21, also known as Down syndrome. Another type of genetic disorders is monogenic disorders. These are associated with diseases such as cystic fibrosis and thalassemia. The preimplantation genetic testing of the embryo is done by biopsy during its development, usually on the third or fifth day (blastocyst stage) of its in vitro development.