KONSTANTINOS I. PANTOS

SPECIALIST IN ASSISTED REPRODUCTION TECHNOLOGIES

 

“GENESIS ATHENS”, Papanikoli 14-16, 152 32 Halandri

Tel. +30 210 6894326 | Fax +30 210 6890897

E info@pantos.gr | www.genesisathens.gr

 

The gynecologist Konstantinos Pantos specialized in Obstetrics - Gynecology at the University of Athens and in 1988 he was awarded the title of Doctor of Medicine, University of Athens. He specialized in the field of medically assisted reproduction at the Royal Women Hospital, Melbourne Australia (1987-1989).

CAREER

With nearly thirty years of experience in obstetrics and gynecology and twenty-five years as a specialist in the treatment of infertility, Konstantinos Pantos has experience on all aspects of treatment and assisted reproductive technology.

 

In 1994, Dr. Pantos founded the Center for Human Reproduction, a private response unit of human infertility, which is one of the largest, most comprehensive, specialized fertility service units in Europe with over 4,000 IVF cycles per year. This center hosts infertile couples from around the world, including Europe, Australia and the US and a total of 32 countries. Enjoys international recognition for its high quality medical care, its methods and pioneering work in the treatment of infertility, incorporating always successful new and innovative technologies in patient care.

 

In 2004, Dr. Pantos founded the Clinic "GENESIS ATHENS", a private General Surgerical Clinic, which made a difference in the health sector. It is a modern clinic, equipped with state of the art technolory and staffed with leading scientists of medicine to satisfy needs for highly specialized services and surgical techniques of "one-day hospitalization in the Clinic."

 

The clinic has an Assisted Reproduction Unit, Surgical Department, Gynaecology Department, Microbiology and Biochemistry Laboratory and a Plastic Surgery Department. Beyond this broad experience in medical practice, Dr. Pantos is author of scientific papers and acknowledged presenter at national and international conferences in the field of assisted reproduction, reproductive genetics, obstetrics and gynecology. Tireless in research for improvements in the care of patients, and traveling constantly, Dr. Pantos is known worldwide for his commitment to his medical field and his Scientific Center.

 

He is a member of international organizations, including the ESHERE - European Society for Human Reproduction and Embryology, the Fertility Society of Australia, the New York Academy of Sciences, the American Society of Fertility and national organizations includ- ing the Greek Society for Reproductive Medicine.

 

RESEARCH INTERESTS AND PIONEER CLINICAL APPLICATIONS

Dr. Pantos has concluded scientific collaborations, to conduct research to evaluate and improve clinical applications in the field of assisted reproduction, with national and international institutions and universities such as the Monash Immunology and Stem Cell Laboratory (MISCL), Melbourne, Australia; Molecular Genetics Labo- ratory GENOMA, Rome, Italy; the Medical Genetics Laboratory, Uni- versity of Athens, Greece; PGS Taskforce; the European Society for Human Reproduction and Embryology (ESHRE).

 

In 1997, Dr. Pantos has been the first in Greece to offer the pos- sibility to grow and transfer blastocysts with improved pregnancy rates. In 2003, Dr. Pantos and his team were pioneers in trophectoderm cell biopsy and preimplantation genetic diagnosis (PGD) for β-thalassemia major.

This innovation resulted in the IVF unit to be included (the only from Greece) in the History of IVF-the Milestones worldwide.com/ivf-history.html.

In 2008 Dr. Pantos and his colleagues in Greece and Australia have published an innovating research study for identification of implan- tation markers carried by IVF embryos, which received more than 92 reports in the media, worldwide. This innovation has led to a new success for Dr. Pantos and his team: to be included for the second time in the worldwide directory: the History of IVF-The milestones Recently, Dr. Pantos and his team were selected by the European Society for Human Reproduction and Embryology (ESHRE) to participate in a randomized Control Trial: “The ESHRE Study into The Evaluation of oocyte Euploidy by Microarray analysis (ESTEEM) trial” (http://www.eshre.eu/ESHRE/English/Specialty-Groups/Studygroups/ page.aspx/1546).

 

In February 2011, Dr. Pantos gave an interview to CNN television network on the occasion of delivery of a healthy child after preimplantation genetic diagnosis, for a rare inherited eye disease, which is called LEBER congenital amaurosis (http://www.cnn.com/ worldview (or directly at

 

Recently, Dr. Pantos accomplished the cooperation between "GENESIS ATHENS Clinic" and the University of Athens, for an e-learning educational program which offers to medical graduates and scientists the necessary skills for a successful career in the field of assisted reproduction.

Medical Services

• Hysteroscopy

• Insemination

• Vitro Fertilization and Embryo Transfer

• Opening zona pellucida of fertilized eggs

• Ensosalpinx Gamete Transfer (GIFT)

• Ensosalpinx Transfer zygotes (ZIFT)

• Maturation in the laboratory - in vitro maturation (IVM)

• Conservation embryos, ova and ovarian tissue frozen

• Sperm freezing - Sperm Bank

• Egg donation - Embryo

• Preimplantation Diagnosis

• Department of Psychological Support and Counselling

• Biopsy Testicular in azoospermikous men and Microfertilization Egg

Human reproduction is based on the conjugation of male and female gametes, namely of oocytes and spermatozoa. Oocytes, which are released from the ovary, retain a 12 hour- ability to be fertilized, while spermatozoa retain their fertilizing capacity for about 48 hours after entering the female reproductive system. Spermatozoa travelling through the vagina fertilize oocytes in the ampulla of the fallopian tubes, leading to the zygote formation. The zygote is afterwards transferred to the uterus, where its implantation signalizes the beginning of pregnancy.

 

Medically Assisted Reproduction, constituting a simulation of the above process, has offered in infertile couples the possibility of a pregnancy. Specifically, assisted reproduction involves the transvaginal isolation of oocytes under ultrasound guidance, the proper treatment of semen samples, the in vitro fertilization of oocytes, the preimplantation development of embryos in the IVF laboratory as well as their transfer to the uterus for the implantation.

 

Embryo transfer is feasible at various stages of the embryonic development. The blastocyst formation has been suggested as a criterion of embryo viability assessment. Although blastocysts have similar mor- phology, are usually characterized by significantly different cell number and zona pellucida hatching ability. Human blastocyst has almost 60 cells on the fifth day post-fertilization, up to 160 cells on the sixth day post-fertilization and more than 200 cells after its hatching. Blastocyst trophectoderm cells present faster di- vision compared to the cells of the inner cell mass (ICM). Specifically, from the fourth day post-fertilization, when the formation of blastocyst cavity begins, till its final development, trophectoderm cells are doubled, while the number of the ICM cells is doubled between the fifth and the sixth day post-fertilization. The expanded human blastocyst consists of 60% trophectoderm cells and 40% ICM cells. The transfer at the blas- tocyst stage, namely at the fifth or sixth day post-fertilization, is preferred because according to several studies it significantly increases the implantation rate per transferred blastocyst and the birth rate per IVF cycle, compared to embryo-transfer at earlier developmental stages.

 

Current research studies have focused on the communication between the blastocyst and the endometrium. This com- munication is essential for implantation to occur, while the implantation window is open. It is highly important to recog- nise and investigate certain chemical factors secreted by the blastocyst that lead to recognition of the endometrium and subsequent embryo implantation. The determination of the molecular mechanisms underlying the aforementioned es- tablished communication will be an innovative step towards IVF success.

 

Finally, the development of Preimplantation Genetic Diagnosis (PGD) has enabled the detection of potential chromosomal disorders or genetic diseases of the embryo. The above diagnostic process, which is based on the isolation of one or more cells of the expanding embryo, has permitted the selection of healthy blastocysts during the embryo-transfer, decreasing the chance of a pregnancy loss due to a fetal chromosomal aberration or a pregnancy termination due to a genetic disease.