Preimplantation genetic diagnosis of chromosome balance in embryos from a patient with a balanced reciprocal translocation

Duplications or deletions are present in a high percentage of the gametes produced by individuals carrying balanced translocations. Preimplantation genetic diagnosis was used to examine chromosome balance in embryos from a patient having a reciprocal translocation within the short arms of chromosomes 5 and 8 (46,XX,t(5;8)(p13;p23)). This woman has two sisters with the translocation unbalanced, resulting in a partial trisomy for chromosome 5 and partial monosomy for chromosome 8 (46,XX,-8, + der(8)t(5;8)(p13;p23)) with associated mental retardation and physical abnormalities. The patient and her husband desired to have children without the abnormal chromosome balance and wished to reduce the likelihood of spontaneous abortion or need for therapeutic abortion. Fluorescence in-situ hybridization (FISH) probes for the a-satellite region of chromosome 8 and for a region on the short arm of chromosome 5 (5p15.2) were tested initially on lymphocytes from the patient and her sisters. The hybridization signal for chromosome 5 was detected in the expected two copies for the patient and three copies for the sisters in 87% of the cells. Two hybridization signals for chromosome 8 were detected in 96% of the cells from all individuals. Additional probe testing was done using blastomeres from polyspermic embryos. The couple then proceeded with a stimulated in-vitro fertilization (IVF) cycle and biopsies were done on 13 embryos at the 7-10-cell stage using a method of zona drilling and fluid displacement. Diagnosis was possible on at least one blastomere for nine embryos. Three embryos had nuclei with three hybridization signals for chromosome 5, three had fewer than two signals for one or both chromosomes, one was mosaic, and two had two signals for each chromosome. The latter were transferred to the patient, but pregnancy was not achieved. The results demonstrate that preimplantation genetic diagnosis for patients with reciprocal translocations can be used to identify embryos having normal chromosome balance. The potential advantages and limitations of this approach are discussed.