An emerging technology in China aims to give infertile couples a shot of having children and assist the government's plan to boost population.

Researchers from the National Engineering Research Center of Beijing Biochip Technology are attempting to make a breakthrough and use bioscience to prevent future birth crisis through biochips.

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There are three recently developed biochips that aim to give infertile couples a chance to conceive via human-assisted reproductive technology. Two of which were created to test and evaluate the sperm's quality, while the other one is designed to assess if the egg is viable enough to be fertilized, said Xing Wanli, Beijing's CapitalBio Corp. deputy director and vice president.

The biochips, which are  smaller than a palm of a six-month old baby, will soon undergo clinical testing.

"Trials conducted on mice indicate that the biochips work successfully," Xing said.

The biochips work like a pregnancy test kit. Instead of dropping urine to a portable device, semen samples are used and delivered to the biochips via a pipette. Once samples are in the biochip, activities of both sperms and eggs can be observed under a microscope.

The biochips do not need a particular power supply. It can be used by any laboratories. Because scientists did not use any expensive materials, prices are expected to be within 1,000 yuan ($154) if mass produced for clinical purposes.

This technology intends to address China's aging population and infertility problems which affect at least 15 percent of the Chinese population between ages 20 and 49 (around 40 million individuals), according to the China Sexology Association and the Chinese Medical Association's Andrology department.

It added that one in every eight couples are unable to naturally conceive a child. Infertility rate soared tenfold over nearly the last five decades.

However, Wu Jingchun, former deputy director of the National Health and Family Planning Commission, noted that real-life cases may be worse than figures alone, estimating that about one-fourth (25 percent) of the population are actually affected.

"The number is still rising. A birth crisis is approaching," she said.

Tagschina, biochips, Infertility, human-assisted reproductive technology, aging population, One Child Policy