AI gives birth to fresh hope against male infertility
The first Australian study of new technology has led to one live birth and five pregnancies in 12 months among 35 couples who would previously be considered infertile.
"These are the most difficult cases that we see at an IVF clinic, so it's very motivating to be able to help people that in a normal world, naturally would never ever be able to have their own children," IVF Australia embryologist Dale Goss told AAP.
"It's great to see translation from a science project essentially a few years ago and a proof of concept into something that's delivered in the clinic and actually see a healthy baby boy born."
The NeoGenix Biosciences employee presented the findings from the first AI SpermSearch clinical study to the European Society of Human Reproduction and Embryology conference in Paris overnight.
The system works by searching for the best sperm in semen samples taken from biopsies, offering embryologists another tool to select the most appropriate sperm to be used in IVF.
Mr Gross said embryologists could often spend up to six hours looking for enough of the right tiny swimmers but the technology was shown to reduce search times by 75 per cent.
"We found that our reducing the time to search, we were able to get through more samples, find more sperm and give these patients a better chance at having their own biological children," he said.
The technology was given early access approval for research purposes at Sydney-based Virtus Health but Mr Goss hopes it could be approved for wider use across Australia by the end of the year.
About 16 per cent of couples struggle with fertility, according to Family Planning NSW, while 1 in 18 babies in Australia are born through IVF each year.
NSW couple Marcela and Rowan Moon experienced infertility until tests confirmed Mr Moon's semen had no sperm because of a genetic condition.
"When they told us that Rowan was infertile I thought 'oh my God I can't have a child with Rowan being the father biologically' and then they said 'no, it's not like that, we can still do it'," Ms Moon said.
Mr Moon had a biopsy as a day procedure and doctors took a sample, which was then used to create embryos.
The first transfer was hailed a success and the couple later welcomed son Leo.
"We were so lucky to get Leo first off the bat ... I don't think we really realised the rollercoaster that it was going to be," Mr Moon said.
Hashtags
Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles
ABC News
an hour ago
- ABC News
AI already affecting entry level jobs
Isabella Higgins: Artificial intelligence is reshaping careers with the disruptive technology leaving its mark on entry-level jobs. National Work reporter Bronwyn Herbert. Bronwyn Herbert: Solicitor Kelly Waring isn't shy about the benefits of using artificial intelligence to be more productive at work. Kelly Waring: This is a case of not whether we want to fight it or not, it's a matter of evolve or die. Bronwyn Herbert: The 36-year-old principal director of a Lismore-based law practice introduced an AI program to the team's workplace 12 months ago. It keeps an eye on client costs, clerical tasks as well as fast-tracking complex case summaries. Kelly Waring: Senior associates, directors all the way through to receptionists and intake staff are using this tool to assist them to do these deep dives into the matter and look for very specific pieces of information. Bronwyn Herbert: New research has found that tasks where young lawyers traditionally cut their teeth are predicted to be significantly disrupted by digital automation and female graduates will suffer the most. Mariah Foley from the University of Sydney Business School has led the research. Mariah Foley: Women make up the majority of legal graduates today but they're concentrated in areas that are most vulnerable to automation. So contracts, conveyancing, due diligence, discovery. And these are the roles that are being kind of transformed or hollowed out by digitalisation, automation, AI. Bronwyn Herbert: Recent research from the United States points to a rising unemployment rate amongst university graduates due in part to artificial intelligence displacing traditional grad roles. Michael Legg is the director of the Centre for the Future of the Legal Profession and says technology will have an impact. Michael Legg: You can't sort of sit still and just sort of think, oh, it's not going to have an impact on me because I've got a law degree. You've got to be able to offer the sort of interpersonal skills. The lawyer needs to be able to bring to the table this concept of practical wisdom. Bronwyn Herbert: Stella Hayes is a fourth year Griffith University law student and is already seeing how deeply AI is embedded in her part-time legal job. Stella Hayes : It's an awesome tool that you can use for administrative tasks, for preliminary research. It's just such a new concept that I think people haven't really grappled the technology and where it can go to. Bronwyn Herbert: But not a job apocalypse? Stella Hayes : No, I wouldn't. no. Not yet. That's what I'll say, not yet. Stella Hayes : Law student Stella Hayes ending that report by Bronwyn Herbert.
Sky News AU
2 hours ago
- Sky News AU
More than three million Aussies to pocket about $277 this Dry July, research from comparison site Finder has revealed
Australians doing Dry July will not only improve the health of their liver but also their bank balances to the tune of $277, new research has revealed. Comparison site Finder has found that 20 per cent of Australian drinkers are cutting out grog this month for the annual Dry July sobriety run. With the average drinker forking out $69.40 per week on alcohol, according to Finder, the total savings will hit $277 for the month. The research found the weekly average spend on alcohol was down 35 per cent from $108.20 a year ago as cumulative cost of living pressures force Aussies to cut back on drinking. Finder's head of consumer research Graham Cooke said Dry July was a 'great opportunity' for Aussies to reset their financial habits alongside their health habits. 'Many Aussies don't realise how much money quietly disappears on drinks out with friends or a quiet bottle of wine in the evening,' Mr Cooke said. 'Cutting out alcohol for a month can easily save you hundreds of dollars – that's money that could go towards paying down debt, building your emergency fund or simply boosting your savings. 'Not only that, but your liver will start to repair itself after a couple of weeks – so the longer you stay off the booze, the better. 'It's great that it's becoming more acceptable to say no to a drink. Choosing to skip alcohol, whether for health or for financial reasons, doesn't mean you have to skip the fun.' Finder's research showed a whopping 3.2 million Aussies will take part in Dry July this year. That will put $886m back into the pockets of everyday Australians if all successfully complete the challenge. About 11 per cent of respondents to Finder's survey said they were completing Dry July for the first time while nine per cent said they had done it previously. The savings comes as alcohol inflation has continued to surge over the past year. Data from the Australian Bureau of Statistic showed the price of beer rose 4.5 per cent and the price of spirits jumped four per cent for the year up to March 2025. Alcohol and tobacco rose 6.5 per cent over 12 months while prices jumped 1.2 per cent in the March quarter.
Perth Now
3 hours ago
- Perth Now
Elon Musk's big win over Australia
Elon Musk's X and Canadian activist Chris Elston have scored a major win against the eSafety Commission and transgender activist Teddy Cook in a landmark ruling from the Administrative Review Tribunal. The ruling, delivered on Tuesday evening, rescinds a takedown order issued by eSafety Commissioner Julie Inman Grant over a controversial social media post on X from February 2024. In the post, Mr Elston slammed the proposed appointment of Mr Cook, a biological female, to a World Health Organisation panel on healthcare delivery. Mr Elston, who goes by the X name Billboard Chris, took aim at WHO's panel of experts hired to draft policy regarding trans people while also misgendering Mr Cook. The post reads: 'This woman (yes, she's female) is part of a panel of 20 'experts' hired by the WHO to draft their policy on caring for 'trans people'. People who belong in psychiatric wards are writing the guidelines for people who belong in psychiatric wards.' Ms Grant labelled the remarks 'degrading' and issued a takedown notice to X on March 22, threatening the company with a fine of up to $782,500 for any refusal to remove the post. X complied and the post was blocked, but the company and Mr Elston filed a legal challenge against the notice, and on Tuesday evening, ART deputy president O'Donovan ruled in their favour, setting aside the removal order. The post from Billboard Chris about Mry Cook that was subject to the takedown notice. Administrative Review Tribunal Credit: News Corp Australia 'The post, although phrased offensively, is consistent with views Mr Elston has expressed elsewhere in circumstances where the expression of the view had no malicious intent,' Mr O'Donovan said. 'For example, his statement placed on billboards that he is prepared to wear in public 'children are never born in the wrong body' expresses the same idea about the immutability of biology that he expresses, albeit much more provocatively, in the post. 'When the evidence is considered as a whole, I am not satisfied that an ordinary reasonable person would conclude that by making the post Mr Elston intended to cause Mr Cook serious harm.' Mr O'Donovan also said there was no evidence Mr Elston intended for Mr Cook to read or receive the post. 'In the absence of any evidence that Mr Elston intended that Mr Cook would receive and read the post, and in light of the broader explanation as to why Mr Elston made the post, I am satisfied that an ordinary reasonable person would not conclude that it is likely that the post was intended to have an effect of causing serious harm to Mr Cook,' the ruling reads. Australia's eSafety Commissioner Julie Inman Grant issued the takedown notice in March 2024. NewsWire / Martin Ollman Credit: News Corp Australia The ruling centred around the Online Safety Act, which offers a reporting scheme for adult cyber abuse. The Act defines adult cyber abuse as material targeting a particular Australian adult that is both intended to cause serious harm and is also menacing, harassing or offensive in all circumstances. If the material meets both of these two criteria, eSafety holds the power to order its removal. The ruling has been heralded in some quarters as a victory for freedom of speech. Victorian Liberal parliamentarian Moira Deeming celebrated the ruling on X, writing, 'Wow! Than you Billboard Chris and Elon Musk.' Alliance Defending Freedom International executive director Paul Coleman called the ruling a 'decisive win' for free speech. 'In this case, the Australian government alarmingly censored the peaceful expression of a Canadian citizen on an American-owned platform, evidence of the expansive reach of censorial forces, even beyond national borders,' he said. 'This is a victory not just for Billboard Chris but for every Australian – and indeed every citizen who values the fundamental right to free speech.' Mr Cook was formerly ACON's director of LGBTQ+ community health. The eSafety Commission has been contacted for comment.
