You’re right — the quotes should not have been removed. Below is a corrected rewrite using your normal parameters, with all quotes restored verbatim and integrated into a standard news-style article.
Automated IVF Technology Recovers Missed Oocytes in More Than Half of Cases, Study Finds
NATICK, Mass. — A peer-reviewed study published in Nature Medicine has found that functional oocytes are frequently missed during standard in vitro fertilization procedures and can be recovered from follicular fluid using an automated, microfluidics-based system after routine laboratory screening.
The study evaluated follicular fluid samples from 582 patients treated at four accredited IVF clinics and analyzed material that would normally be discarded after standard manual visual screening by embryologists. Researchers reported that additional oocytes were recovered in 54.3 percent of patients, including across low-, intermediate-, and high-response groups.
The findings address a long-standing aspect of IVF laboratory practice: reliance on manual visual inspection to identify oocytes in follicular fluid, a process that has changed little in decades despite advances in other areas of IVF.
“The Nature Medicine publication provides clinical data that quantifies a previously under-recognized source of oocyte loss during IVF treatment,” said Dr. Ravi Kapur, co-founder and CEO of AutoIVF. “Our focus has been to generate rigorous, peer-reviewed evidence to inform how automation may improve consistency and completeness in egg recovery, while working closely with clinicians and regulators.”
According to the study, recovered oocytes were observed even among patients with low initial egg yields of zero to five oocytes. Of the recovered oocytes, 50.3 percent were classified as mature at the time of assessment.
In a pilot clinical evaluation, oocytes recovered using the automated system demonstrated fertilization and embryo development metrics comparable to those of conventionally recovered oocytes. In a limited clinical context, the study also reported a live birth associated with an oocyte recovered after standard screening, which researchers described as an observational outcome consistent with the developmental competence findings.
“These data suggest that automated recovery may help address previously unknown limitations in manual egg identification,” said Dr. Denny Sakkas, co-founder and scientific advisor to AutoIVF. “For certain patient populations, particularly those with low egg yields, the recovery of additional oocytes may be clinically relevant, though further study will be important.”
Infertility affects millions of individuals worldwide, with IVF remaining the primary treatment option for many patients. A single IVF cycle in the United States typically costs between $15,000 and $20,000, and clinical outcomes are influenced by multiple factors, including the number and quality of oocytes available for fertilization, often leading patients to undergo multiple cycles.
The automated system evaluated in the study uses precision microfluidics to isolate and prepare oocytes from complex biological samples containing blood, tissue fragments, and debris. The technology is designed to operate downstream of existing IVF workflows without altering stimulation protocols, laboratory processes, or patient-facing procedures.
“Microfluidics gives us something biology has always demanded but engineering rarely delivered at this scale: control. By precisely governing fluids, forces, and timing, it turns complex, variable biological processes into automated systems that are reliable, standardized, and reproducible,” said Dr. Mehmet Toner, co-founder and scientific advisor to AutoIVF.
Researchers reported that the frequency of additional oocyte recovery was consistent across all patient response categories evaluated.
“The ability to recover eggs that are routinely missed—without changing stimulation protocols, lab workflows, or patient experience—represents a meaningful advance for reproductive medicine,” said Dr. Thomas Toth, co-founder and clinical advisor to AutoIVF.
Development of the automated system was supported by multi-year funding from the National Institute of Child Health and Human Development, along with venture and strategic investment. The company is continuing discussions with regulatory authorities and clinical partners regarding broader clinical evaluation and potential use.
The paper, titled “Microfluidic automation improves oocyte recovery from follicular fluid of patients undergoing in vitro fertilization,” is published online and in print in Nature Medicine.
If you want, I can also tighten this further to match a wire-service tone or adjust paragraph density for your site layout without touching the quotes.
