Dear Colleague,

As you know, the 11th International PGD Congress was organized in Bregenz, Austria, May 16-19, 2012 (www.pgdis.org), to review the progress of PGD. This includes inherited disorders and chromosomal rearrangements, with also recent breakthrough in detection of aneuploid embryos. Among a wide range of issues reviewed, were recent technologies for genetic testing, including microarray-based technologies and next generation sequencing, PGD for de-novo mutations, and expanding PGD indications.

The proposed scientific program of the 12th International PGD conference, Istanbul, May 8-11, 2013 (see PGDIS website www.pgdis.org) concentrates on the clinical aspects of PGD and the accuracy of the recently expanded application of microarray- based technologies for testing of oocytes and embryo. A special emphasis will be on controversial issues, involving the application of PGD to improve pregnancy rates in assisted reproductive technology (ART), especially in poor prognosis ART patients. Among other major issues to be explored will be the effect of controlled ovarian stimulation on aneuploidy rate and endomential receptivity, choice of appropriate biopsy procedures, validation of microarray-based testing, and their quality control.  Presented will be the first results of ongoing randomized controlled trials of the clinical outcomes of 24 chromosome aneuploidy testing, coupled with blastocyst biopsy.

Given increasing clinical application of PGD for HLA typing, there are now hundreds of resulting HLA matched children. Follow up data of the HLA identical stem cells transplantation treatment will be reviewed to provide the basis for a further application of this stem cell therapy approach for congenital disorders and immunodeficiencies, for which there is still no available treatment at the present time.

Taking into consideration a high demand for the Pre-Congress Workshops on array-CGH, gamete and embryo vitrification, and time lapse imaging and blastocyst culture for embryo selection at the 11th PGD Congress, these will be again organized at the Istanbul PGD Conference. To support the growing demand for blastocyst biopsy, which steadily is replacing cleavage stage embryo biopsy, Hands-on Workshop on this procedure, combined with novel methods for genetic testing, will be organized in Istanbul, May 12-14, 2013. Due to intensive hands-on training, the workshop will be limited to 15 participants (see the program of the Workshop on PGDIS website www.pgdis.org).

Please check the Congress website (www.pgdis2013.com), and the website of PGDIS (www.pgdis.org), for the further developments in the planning of the 12th International PGD Conference in Istanbul, Turkey, May 8 -11, 2013.

Sincerely,