Revolutionizing Fertility Treatment: Tel Aviv University’s Breakthrough IVF Technology

February 12, 2025

2:12 PM

Reading time: 5 minutes


A groundbreaking fertility technology developed at Tel Aviv University is poised to transform the landscape of in vitro fertilization (IVF), offering renewed hope for couples struggling to conceive. This innovative method has shown a dramatic increase in success rates, boosting the likelihood of pregnancy from 34% to 65%, an impressive leap that could redefine fertility treatments globally.

At the heart of this breakthrough is a precise and advanced method of sperm selection, developed by Natan T. Shaked, chair of Tel Aviv University’s Biomedical Engineering Department. By using World Health Organization criteria to carefully select the highest-quality sperm cells, the technology significantly improves the chances of a healthy pregnancy and birth.

Clinical trials have shown remarkable success: 20 successful pregnancies from just 31 embryo transfers, compared to 14 pregnancies from 41 transfers in the control group. This substantial improvement highlights the potential of this technology to revolutionize fertility medicine.

Until now, sperm selection in IVF has been largely based on motility (movement) and basic morphology (shape), with limited tools to assess internal sperm structure and DNA integrity. However, this new technology changes that entirely. The advanced optical imaging technique developed by Shaked’s team allows clinicians to assess sperm without the need for chemical staining, using light interference and holography to evaluate three key parameters: internal sperm morphology, motility, and DNA fragmentation.

This breakthrough allows for the evaluation of live sperm cells in real-time without damaging them, ensuring only the healthiest sperm are chosen for fertilization. This ability to assess internal sperm quality, combined with improved motility and DNA integrity, dramatically increases the chances of a successful IVF outcome.

The research, now undergoing clinical trials at leading hospitals in Israel and international institutions like UCSF Medical Center in California and the University of Tokyo Hospital in Japan, has garnered attention in top scientific journals such as Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences, Advanced Science, and Fertility and Sterility.

The technology is being promoted by QART Medical, a startup co-founded by Shaked and Alon Shalev, CEO. The company’s mission is to bring this cutting-edge technology to hospitals worldwide, offering new hope to couples seeking to become parents.

Real Success Stories

The technology has already had life-changing effects for many couples. One couple, after enduring 15 failed IVF cycles, succeeded on their 16th attempt using the new technology. Their successful pregnancy brought immense joy and hope, reinforcing the transformative power of this innovation.

QART Medical’s CEO, Alon Shalev, shared the rewarding experience of seeing real couples achieve their dream of parenthood through this technology. “We’re not just developing a product—we’re giving people a chance to build families,” he said.

Looking Ahead: The Future of IVF

The next step for QART Medical is global expansion, bringing this breakthrough to fertility clinics around the world. The company is also working on automating the sperm selection process, which will further enhance the precision of IVF treatments by eliminating human bias and improving success rates even further.

Shaked believes that this technology will not only increase pregnancy success rates but also improve the health of babies born through IVF. "We are giving embryologists a new way to see sperm—like giving them glasses that allow them to see the invisible,” he said. This approach will undoubtedly reshape the future of fertility medicine.

Facebook Icon
Instagram Icon
YouTube Icon

Copyright © 2024 TBN Israel. All rights reserved.