Scientists in London have been granted permission to edit the genomes of human embryos for research, UK fertility regulators announced today. The approval on 1 February by the UK’s Human Fertilisation and Embryology Authority (HFEA) represents the world’s first endorsement of such research by any national regulatory authority.
Tag: embryos
What Should Be the Fate of a Spare Frozen Embryo?
There are more than 600,000 embryos frozen solid in clinics and labs across the United States, according to the Department of Health and Human Services. These excess embryos are a necessary byproduct of in vitro fertilization. For people who believe that life begins at conception, these embryos raise complex questions of logistics, priorities, and ethical consistency.
How the World’s Governments Have Regulated Human Genome Editing
Three members of McGill University’s Centre of Genomics and Policy—Rosario Isasi, Erika Kleiderman, and Centre Director Bartha Maria Knoppers—have published a global survey of restrictions on modifying the human genome. The article, which appears in Science and is free to access, comes in the midst of a simmering debate about CRISPR gene editing, a powerful technique for rewriting living genomes, which has already been used at least once in (nonviable) human embryos and inspired calls for a voluntary moratorium on editing human egg, sperm, and embryonic cells.
Scientist Makes Case to Edit Embryos
A scientist has been making her case to be the first in the UK to be allowed to genetically modify human embryos.
IVG Represents a Long-Overdue Shift in Attitudes Toward Same-Sex Parents
In the not-so-distant future, same-sex couples may be able to have children that are biologically related to both of them. A recent article in the Journal of Law and the Biosciences outlines a new process known as in vitro gametogenesis, or IVG, through which scientists use stem cells—taken from embryos or adults—to create gametes, the technical name for eggs and sperm, regardless of gender. Scientists have already had partial success with IVG on mice, and were able to create offspring that came from a mixture of one gamete created through this new process and one created naturally.
What Should I have Done After an IVF Mix-Up?
I continue to struggle with decisions I made many years ago following an in vitro mix-up. The technology was then relatively new. I became pregnant with another couple’s child because of the negligence of the medical staff during the transfer of embryos from the petri dish to my womb. The mistake was discovered when the nurse called me by the wrong name as I was wheeled out of the operating room. I asked my husband to make sure our embryos were not at that moment being transferred into another woman. Thankfully, that had not happened.
Italian scientists Used ‘chromosomally Abnormal’ Embryos to Produce 6 Healthy Babies
Embryos with a mix of normal and abnormal chromosomes implanted during in vitro fertilization (IVF) can develop into healthy newborns, a small new study suggests.
Exome Sequencing Homes in on Gene Linked to Early Human Embryonic Lethality
By sequencing the exomes of women having difficulties conceiving, researchers in Saudi Arabia have discovered a gene that, when mutated, leads to the early death of embryos.
INVOcell Intravaginal IVF Embryo Incubator FDA Approved
In-vitro fertilization is a laborious process that requires careful preparation and incubation of embryos. INVO Bioscience out of Medford, Massachusetts just received FDA de novo approval to introduce its INVOcell intravaginal culture system that allows women to use their bodies as the incubator.
Scientists Apply for License to Edit Genes in Human Embryos
Scientists in London have asked for permission to edit the genomes of human embryos—a request that could lead to the world’s first approval of such research by a national regulatory body.