Aivfo Pledges Donation of 100,000 Cycles of IVF Culture Media Amid Global Supply Crisis; Files for IPO

China is the largest assisted reproductive technology (ART) market globally. According to a report released by Qianzhan Industry Research Institute, the size of China’s ART market rose to RMB 15 billion in 2015 and further increased to approximately RMB 18.5 billion in 2016, with an overall growth rate exceeding 20%. The market growth rate is expected to remain at around 15% in the short term, while the medium- to long-term growth in market capacity is projected to stabilize at approximately 10%. By 2022, the total market size of China’s ART sector is anticipated to surpass RMB 40 billion.

Currently, China has more than 500 IVF centers and is the country with the highest number of IVF cycles worldwide, accounting for one-third of the global total. China’s assisted reproductive technology (ART) is also among the most advanced globally, with clinical pregnancy rates, live birth rates, and miscarriage rates comparable to international standards.

IVF culture media are essential products for assisted reproductive technology (ART). Surprisingly, despite the unprecedented boom in China’s ART market, no domestic company has yet obtained registration approval for IVF culture media, resulting in 100% reliance on imports.

Europe and the United States are the primary sources of IVF culture media. Recently, with the rapid spread of the COVID-19 pandemic overseas, there has been a risk of supply shortages for IVF culture media.

Chengdu Aifu Bio Technology Co., Ltd. is a high-tech enterprise in China dedicated to providing a comprehensive culture system for assisted reproduction. Its core business involves the research and development, manufacturing, and sales of culture media for in vitro fertilization-embryo transfer (IVF-ET, commonly known as "test-tube baby"). The company has mastered the core technologies for IVF culture media, and its full-range culture media products are poised to obtain registration certificates, holding the promise of breaking the monopoly held by foreign competitors.

In response to the risk of IVF culture media supply disruptions caused by the overseas COVID-19 pandemic, Chengdu Aifu Bio Technology Co., Ltd. announced that it would donate 100,000 cycles’ worth of its comprehensive assisted reproductive technology (ART) culture media free of charge to domestic centers for emergency use, should the impact of the pandemic in Europe and America lead to shortages of its series of IVF culture media products in China.

In the maternal womb, the embryo can obtain the necessary nutrients and is protected by the mother from damage caused by adverse external factors. In vitro fertilization (IVF) embryos lack this maternal protection and therefore require support from IVF culture media.

IVF culture media are used in the preparation, culture, transfer, and storage of gametes and embryos. They can simulate the composition and concentration of human fallopian tube fluid, better meeting the nutritional needs of human embryos. These media play a crucial role in the in vitro culture of embryos and can be said to determine the success or failure of in vitro fertilization (IVF). Currently, IVF culture media have become a research hotspot in the field of assisted reproduction.

Yan Fei, CEO of Chengdu Aifu Bio Technology Co., Ltd., stated that IVF culture media are essential for assisted reproductive services. Currently, China relies entirely on imports for IVF culture media. If the pandemic continues to spread in Europe and the United States, leading to production halts by overseas IVF culture media manufacturers, it would disrupt the clinical operations of IVF centers in China and potentially cause them to cease operations.

IVF culture media are categorized into sequential and single-step systems. Sequential culture media include fertilization medium, cleavage-stage medium, and blastocyst culture medium, requiring medium changes to cleavage-stage medium on day 1 and to blastocyst medium on day 3 after oocyte fertilization. Single-step culture media allow embryo culture throughout the entire process without any medium changes. Due to their operational simplicity and reduced interference with embryonic growth and development, single-step culture media align with current trends in assisted reproductive technology clinical practice and are gradually replacing sequential culture media.

Chengdu Aifu Bio Technology Co., Ltd. has developed a comprehensive line of culture media. Currently, it is one of the few companies in China with a complete production line for culture media systems. The company has filed 26 patent applications and obtained 11 patent grants. It offers more than 20 product categories, including sequential embryo culture media, sperm washing and fertilization media, gamete buffer solutions, vitrification solutions, and oil for embryo culture.

Chengdu Aifu Bio Technology Co., Ltd.’s entire culture media production line has been established in accordance with world-class quality control standards, and all products have passed testing by the National Institutes for Food and Drug Control. According to Yan Fei, the product’s technical indicators have reached international leading levels while offering superior cost-performance ratio.

It is understood that Aifu Bio’s product registration progress is the fastest in China, and it is expected to become the first IVF culture media R&D enterprise in China to obtain a registration certificate.