The Story of Women: Women Scientists Who Are the Forgotten Heroes of IVF

In vitro fertilization (IVF) is sometimes regarded as the "last resort" in the field of infertility. Most people are unaware that for many infertile couples, in vitro fertilization (IVF) therapy can be their first and most effective alternative. For same-sex couples or women with infertility diagnoses that prohibit sperm and egg from meeting through natural means, conventional conception and pregnancy are not options. When in-vitro fertilization (IVF) was still in its experimental stages less than 50 years ago, scientists—among them some of the first women—were hard at work creating a process that would one day be used as a standard treatment for infertility. Using sperm and an egg outside of the body, in vitro fertilization (IVF) creates embryos that are then placed inside the uterus. IVF recently made headlines when the Alabama Supreme Court ruled in February 2024 that frozen embryos developed through IVF were considered children under state law. This decision caused IVF procedures to be temporarily halted until legal protections were established in March. This occurrence has brought to light the significant effects of IVF as well as the efforts made by the women who were instrumental in its creation.From Miriam Menkin in the 1930s to Georgeanna Seegar Jones in the late 1970s and 1980s, women scientists have been pivotal figures in advancing IVF technology. Margaret Marsh, a scholar specializing in reproductive medicine and reproductive sexuality at Rutgers University, and Dr. Wanda Ronner, a clinical obstetrics and gynecology professor at the University of Pennsylvania, Some Insights on Miriam Menkin The Forgotten Women Who Fought The Battle ~  (Source: Google Images)  Working together from the late 1930s through the 1950s, Miriam Menkin and Harvard gynecologist Dr. John Rock unraveled the mystery of women's natural conception. In order to ascertain when human embryo creation occurs during conception, Rock and embryologist Arthur Hertig carried out ground-breaking research on in vitro fertilization (IVF). Menkin worked as Rock's laboratory technician and was an important part of that research. Her duties involved taking eggs from patients undergoing surgery and trying to fertilize them in a lab with sperm given by others. Notwithstanding the difficulties, Menkin's perseverance paid off in 1944 when an egg was successfully fertilized outside the body, a major advancement in the field of reproductive science.  Menkin's invaluable contributions to Rock's work underscore the significance of women scientists, many of whom are yet underappreciated historical heroes. Menkin didn't have a PhD, but Rock nevertheless recognized her revolutionary efforts and made sure she was credited as the first author of their study article—an uncommon honor for women in science at the time. Follow Up On her Contribution by Jean Purdy   ~  Jean Purdy ~  (Source: Google Images)  After the groundbreaking IVF experiment described in the 1944 Science paper by Rock and Menkin, two British scientists, Robert Edwards and Patrick Steptoe, started their own IVF adoption journeys. Around 1968, Jean Purdy—a devoted technician and research assistant for Edwards—became a pivotal element in this project. Having been trained as a nurse, Purdy decided to study embryology while working with the two. Their combined efforts paid off in 1973 when Purdy took on the difficult challenge of fusing sperm and eggs to fertilize embryos. Their perseverance paid off when Louise Brown became the world's first IVF-conceived baby in 1978, despite early failures. However, doubts persisted in England about the viability of IVF and its possible effects on progeny. Unfazed, Purdy and the other two opened an IVF clinic in 1980. Sadly, Purdy passed away from melanoma before turning forty, but she left behind a legacy of groundbreaking work in the field of IVF. Although Edwards was awarded a Nobel Prize in 2010 for his contribution to the invention of IVF, Purdy's important work was frequently overlooked. Marsh highlights Purdy's vital role, reiterating Steptoe and Edwards' recognition of her as an equal collaborator in their ground-breaking work.