"Only 50 to 60 percent of all conceptions advance beyond 20 weeks and of pregnancies that are lost, 75 percent represent a failure of implantation."
Researcher Susan J. Fisher
WASHINGTON, Jan. 16, 2003 - (AP) In research that could lead both to new ways to treat infertility and new types of contraceptives, scientists have identified molecules that help embryos stick to the wall of the uterus.
By analyzing carbohydrate molecules on the surface of the uterus during different times of the female cycle and by identifying a protein, called L-selectin, on the surface of the embryo, researchers at the University of California, San Francisco, learned for the first time how the embryo sticks to the wall.
Susan J. Fisher said coatings on the uterus and on the surface of the embryo act like puzzle pieces that touch and quickly lock.
Full article: http://www.cbsnews.com/stories/2003/01/16/health/main536830.shtml
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