Reproductive Genetics Institute was established in 1990 by our scientific director and CEO, Dr. Yury Verlinsky, who passed away in July of 2009. Dr. Verlinksy was known worldwide as an expert in preimplantation genetic diagnosis (PGD), for pioneering the polar body biopsy and the removal technology that is widely used during PGD today. Dr. Verlinsky and the staff at RGI published the first cases of PGD using the polar body biopsy technique in order to test for genetic disease. Since the first attempts at PGD in 1990, our team has published numerous articles summarizing the work that we have performed. Please click here to review our scientific publications. 

Worldwide, our center is recognized as a leading genetics institute for the prevention of genetic disease through preimplantation genetic diagnosis or PGD. We specialize in PGD for genetic disease caused by a single gene defect, as well as testing for chromosome problems, such as chromosome translocations, inversions or aneuploidy, such as Down syndrome. Our staff of geneticists, genetic counselors, fertility specialists and embryologists are highly trained in the fields of preimplantation genetic diagnosis and infertility treatments. 

We understand how difficult and overwhelming the decision to pursue fertility treatments such as in vitro fertilization (IVF) and PGD can be, and we are honored to work with the couples and families who entrust their future with us. Couples pursuing PGD with our center work closely with our experienced genetic counselors. Genetic counselors are medical professionals with a background in medical and molecular genetics. They are educators whose role is to walk you through the process of IVF and PGD. We think it is extremely important for couples pursuing this complex form of genetic testing to have access to our staff throughout the entire process, so we can ensure that they understand and feel comfortable with the information they are given. As the process of IVF and PGD is quite taxing and emotional, we are also available for support and to make referrals to other specialists when necessary.

Many of the families we work with travel from different areas of the country and world to pursue PGD with us. We understand how difficult it can be for couples to leave work and other family members at home while traveling to our institute for treatment. We are available to help you make your trip go as smoothly as possible, including assisting you with your hotel arrangements, scheduling an interpreter, or making a restaurant recommendation. 

We also have a number of highly trained embryologists who may be able to travel to your local fertility center for testing. If your local IVF center has an embryologist trained in polar body biopsy or blastomere biopsy, they can perform the biopsy procedure and we will accept the samples for the purpose of genetic testing.

If you are interested in talking with one our genetic counselors in order to schedule a free telephone consultation, please contact us.