ABSTRACT
Polar bodies (PB) are the byproducts of female meiosis, extruded during maturation and fertilization of oocytes. The first PB (PB1) is extruded as a result of the first meiotic division, while the second PB (PB2) is the outcome of the second meiotic division. Because neither PB1 nor PB2 have biological significance in pre-implantation and postimplantation development they may be removed and analyzed to investigate the genetic normality of the corresponding oocytes. It is, of course, possible to obtain the genotype of an oocyte by direct analysis, but this analysis will destroy the oocyte. Although the information about genotypes may also be inferred from the materials secreted into culture media, so far such attempts for non-invasive testing of oocytes or embryos before transfer have not proved successful.
