Faculty
David Gardner
Australia
Prof. David Gardner
Professor David Gardner completed his DPhil in Embryology/Biochemistry at the University of York, in the laboratory of Professor Henry Leese, in 1987. In 1988 he moved to Harvard Medical School to work with Professor John Biggers, after which he moved to Monash, Australia, in 1989, to work with Professor Alan Trounson. Whilst at Monash, he developed culture systems for several mammalian species, including the human. In 1997 he became the Scientific Director of the Colorado Centre for Reproductive Medicine in Denver, one of America’s leading IVF programs, where his work on human embryo culture conditions revolutionized how human IVF is performed today with the introduction of blastocyst transfer. His team was also the first to vitrify the human blastocyst. In 2007 he returned to Australia to become a Professor and Head of Department (Zoology) at the University of Melbourne. In 2015 he joined the newly formed School of BioSciences. In 2017 he became the Scientific Director of Melbourne IVF, was elected into the Australian Academy of Science and was the recipient of the Distinguished Researcher Award from the American Society of Reproductive Medicine.
Professor Gardner has published over 265 papers and chapters and has edited 15 books on Embryology and Human IVF. His research program remains focused on how embryos interact with their environment and the endometrium, and how metabolic function of embryos can regulate the thereby affecting developmental programming. He also continues his research into biomarkers of viability and the automation of IVF through microfluidics and microengineering. This body of work will not only further increase IVF success rates but will facilitate the delivery of healthy babies who will live healthy lives.
Prof. Michael Grynberg
France
Prof. Michael Grynberg
Michael Grynberg is an obstetrician gynecologist specializing in reproductive medicine and is currently the Head of Department of Reproductive Medicine & Fertility Preservation at the University Hôpital Antoine Béclère, Clamart, France. His research interests include the assessment of ovarian follicular status and the regulation of anti-Müllerian hormone. Over the past seven years he has expanded his research into the field of oncofertility and recently became President of the French Society of Oncofertililty. Prof M. Grynberg has published over 150 peer-reviewed articles.
Prof. Alan Handyside
UK
Prof. Alan Handyside
Alan Handyside received his degree and PhD from the University of Cambridge and has been a Scientific Advisor at Vitrolife since 2019. He developed the first transgenic mouse knockout of the HPRT gene using embryonic stem cells as a model of the human X-linked inherited disease, Lesch-Nyhan Syndrome. He then joined Prof. Lord Robert Winston at Hammersmith Hospital, London and in 1990 achieved the first pregnancies worldwide following IVF and preimplantation genetic testing (PGT) of inherited disease. Prof. Handyside was also the director and consultant in preimplantation genetics at the Bridge Clinic in London for twenty years and Principal Scientist at Illumina.
Prof. William Ledger
Australia
Prof. William Ledger
Professor William Ledger is Head of Discipline of Obstetrics and Gyneacology of the Faculty of Medicine at the University of New South Wales, Director of Reproductive Medicine and Senior Staff Specialist at the Royal Hospital for Women and Chair of the Research and Development Committee and a fertility specialist at IVFAustralia. Professor Ledger is a member of the RANZCOG Research Committee and the Scientific Advisory Committee of the Fertility Society of Australia. Recently, he was a member of the NHMRC Working Party to review national guidelines on ethics and ART. He is a member of the Editorial Board of 9 scientific journals, author of 276 journal articles and 17 books, and President of the13th biennial congress of the Pacific Society for Reproductive Medicine (PSRM 2022). His research interests focus on in vitro fertilization and assisted reproduction, impacts of reproductive ageing and disorders such as endometriosis, premature ovarian failure and polycystic ovary syndrome on fertility and quality of life, reproductive effects of cancer treatment and onco-fertility and health economic and demographic aspects of infertility.
Dr. Marcos Meseguer
Spain
Dr. Marcos Meseguer
Dr. Marcos Meseguer was born in November 1974, received his Biological Sciences Degree in 1997 from the University of Valencia in Spain. He performed a pre-doctoral fellowship in St Mary´s Hospital, Manchester University, United Kingdom. He received his Ph.D. Degree in Obstetrics and Gynecology in 2002 from the University of Valencia, Spain, and the European Doctor Degree from the same university. He has also a master’s degree in research Methods; Design and Statistics from Universidad Autónoma de Barcelona, Spain. He is Scientific Supervisor in Equipo IVI and Senior Embryologist in the IVF unit of IVI Valencia. He was Co-Director of the Andrology Laboratory at the Instituto Valenciano de Infertilidad (IVI) from 2000 to 2004.
Dr. Meseguer is a member of various scientific societies and has received the prize paper of the Society of Reproduction and Infertility (American Society of Reproductive Medicine). Three times the Lalor Foundation International Award from the American Society of Andrology and four times the research award from the Spanish Society of Fertility. The primary areas of his research are embryology and male infertility. As Principal Investigator, his work has been funded through 10 projects sponsored by the Spanish Government and the Valencian Government, including four EUREKA projects (granted to high quality technological projects) supported by the European Community. He has published over 140 articles and 50 reviews or book chapters, made more than 450 presentations at national and international congresses. He has been the Director of 12 Doctoral Thesis all qualified with “Cum Laude”, and actually is directing 7 doctoral thesis. He is also currently Statistics Advisor of Equipo IVI the biggest group of infertility clinics in Spain and one of the most important in Europe, and Associate Professor of the master’s in biotechnology from Valencia University.
Prof. Nick Raine-Fenning
UK
Prof. Nick Raine-Fenning
Prof. Nick Raine-Fenning works as a Consultant Gynaecologist and Reader / Associate Professor of Reproductive Medicine and Surgery. He is the Director of Research for the Nurture Fertility. Nick is a member of the Board of the International Society for Ultrasound in Obstetrics & Gynecology (ISUOG) and sits on their Web and Clinical Standards Committees, 3D Focus and Patient Liaison Groups, and leads the Reproductive Medicine component of the Gynecology Focus Group. He is also a core member of the Education Board, who he is helping define Minimal Standards for Gynaecological Imaging and is leading a task force who are defining guidelines for ultrasound in gynaecology and early pregnancy.
Pieter Steensma
The Netherlands
Pieter Steensma
Pieter Steensma, a trained sonographer, worked in OB/GYN, abdominal and vascular sonography prior to joining GE Healthcare in 2001. Since then he has held various positions supporting the GE Women‘s Health Ultrasound team and is currently the Clinical and Commercial Leader for the Northern Europe region. Voluson and ultrasound are his passion and he is keen on sharing his knowledge with others.
Jaco Terblanche
France
Jaco Terblanche
Jaco Terblanche is the Vitrolife Academy Manager overseeing global education and training at Vitrolife. For the past 10 years he has been jointly responsible for conducting workshops for embryologists all over the world, providing both theoretical and hands-on training. Before joining Vitrolife as Clinical Support specialist in 2010, Jaco worked as a clinical embryologist in London (UK) and Dallas, TX (USA) and has managed the laboratory of London Fertility Centre on Harley Street.