Maintaining a clean in vitro fertilization laboratory

IVF laboratories have been designed to provide optimal growth conditions for gametes in culture. Regardless of the environmental "hardware" in place, there are a number of "software" best practices that each laboratory can employ to ensure an optimal environment. Suboptimal laboratory environments expose human gametes and embryos to contamination and stress. Bacteria can cause degeneration of embryos, while fungus can retard embryonic development. All of these factors can impact embryo quality leading to lower pregnancy and live birth rates. Recently, epigenetic impairment due to stressful lab conditions has been described, providing yet another compelling reason to maintain a clean environment. Strategies for maintaining a clean IVF laboratory include development and review of protocols, quality assurance of reagents and equipment, quality control of the laboratory environment, and implementing simple checklists for proper maintenance. Each of these strategies can be customized for the end user, providing meaningful methods for optimizing culture conditions for oocytes, sperm, and embryos.