1998: Growing to day five
The Modern Laboratory · The Modern Papers
The Modern Papers · MP·10 · 1998
1998: Growing to day five
Embryos grown to the blastocyst in two simple media implanted twice as often as embryos transferred on day three.
The story
In the 1990s most embryos were transferred on day two or three, partly because few laboratories could keep them growing longer without serum or a layer of helper cells. David Gardner, Michelle Lane, William Schoolcraft and their colleagues used two serum-free media, each designed for a different stage of development: the idea that began with measuring what embryos eat (MP·05).
In 23 patients, blastocysts transferred on day five implanted at twice the rate of embryos transferred on day three, and fewer were needed for the same chance of pregnancy. Fewer embryos meant fewer twins and triplets.
Blastocyst culture is now routine, and with it the single embryo transfer described in Room 7.
“Implantation rates for embryos transferred at the blastocyst stage of development were twice that observed for embryos transferred on day 3”From the paper's abstract
The paper
Culture and Transfer of Human Blastocysts Increases Implantation Rates and Reduces the Need for Multiple Embryo Transfers
D. K. Gardner, P. Vella, M. Lane, L. Wagley, T. Schlenker, W. B. Schoolcraft
Fertility and Sterility 1998;69(1):84 to 88. January 1998. Read the paper.
Find it in the museum
Room 3, Growing in the dish, Room 4, Day five, David Gardner, Michelle Lane, William Schoolcraft
How we know
Citation and abstract read in PubMed (PMID 9457939) on 14 October 2026.
The IVF Museum · The Modern Papers
Compiled with AI-assisted research and checked against the original sources. Undergoing peer review. Corrections are warmly welcomed.
