In Vitro Fertility Goddess

Fertility Cure? Implantation Secrets Revealed

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Tuesday 30 September 2008

Source: Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences

Scientists have made another significant breakthrough which has the potential to offer treatment for hundreds of thousands of couples who suffer from so-called unexplained infertility.

A team from Oxford University have for the first time been able to explain and film why some embryos don't implant in the womb.

The researchers discovered two distinct proteins which play a key role in the embryo's latching to the womb. What they found is that once the embryo comes into contact with the womb, chemical signals are sent which allow the embryo's cells to invade the womb and then make connection with the mother's blood supply to form the placenta.

Professor Helen J. Mardon who led the study says that with "many women, attachment and implantation doesn't happen and this is a major cause of infertility. The embryo and womb lining talk to each other, molecularly speaking, which allows them to interact. When the embryo lands on the surface of the uterus wall, it triggers a cascade of signals in both the embryo and uterus. The resulting changes allow the embryo to invade the lining."

The two proteins involved in the crucial latching process belong to the family of Rho GTPases proteins and are called Rac1 and RhoA. Professor Mardon described how they both work: "The first stimulates cells in the womb lining to move and allow the embryo to invade and implant properly while the second inhibits this. We believe this controlled balance of the two proteins is critical for successful implantation of the embryo."

Professor Mardon concluded that if the balance between these two proteins is altered, the cells of the womb lining won't move aside to allow for implantation.

Now that the process behind implantation and its potential failure have been discovered, it could lead to the development of drugs that help embryos implant properly.

In the meantine, if you are looking for some immediate answers and solutions to suspected implantation failure, I highly recommend you have a look at The Fertility Plan »  

It's basically a guide to overcoming infertility naturally, containing useful, well researched, practical and genuine tips to improve the chances of improving implantation and achieving a natural pregnancy. It also includes the equally good eBook Preventing Miscarriage »