First of its kind law in UK concerning babies with three genetic parents
19 Dec 2014 12:52 AM GMT
One of the laws will be that only two of the three adults involved in the process will be considered legal parents of the offspring.
Other regulations include that the fertility regulator must assess each case for a significant risk of disability or serious illness, fertility clinics would need a new licence to offer the technique, the woman donating her egg would not be related to the child and any child born would have no right to information about the donor.
The first baby in Britain with three genetic parents is all set to take birth by next year.
Fetuses can now be conceived using genetic material from three people — a mother, father, and a second woman, who serves as a donor of a vital cellular component. The controversial IVF method will prevent mothers from passing on serious mitochondrial diseases to their children. Mitochondrial disease is passed from mother to child through faults in the mitochondrial DNA. It is estimated that 1 in 6,500 children are born every year in the UK with a serious mitochondrial DNA disorder.
The defect lies in so-called mitochondria, the “power houses” of cells. To get rid of defective mitochondria the nucleus of one egg cell has to be transferred to another egg cell bearing intact mitochondria.
Mitochondria are cell organelles located within animal and human cells. They produce energy for the organism, possess their own genetic material - mitochondrial DNA and are transmitted exclusively by the mother.
Other regulations include that the fertility regulator must assess each case for a significant risk of disability or serious illness, fertility clinics would need a new licence to offer the technique, the woman donating her egg would not be related to the child and any child born would have no right to information about the donor.
The first baby in Britain with three genetic parents is all set to take birth by next year.
Fetuses can now be conceived using genetic material from three people — a mother, father, and a second woman, who serves as a donor of a vital cellular component. The controversial IVF method will prevent mothers from passing on serious mitochondrial diseases to their children. Mitochondrial disease is passed from mother to child through faults in the mitochondrial DNA. It is estimated that 1 in 6,500 children are born every year in the UK with a serious mitochondrial DNA disorder.
The defect lies in so-called mitochondria, the “power houses” of cells. To get rid of defective mitochondria the nucleus of one egg cell has to be transferred to another egg cell bearing intact mitochondria.
Mitochondria are cell organelles located within animal and human cells. They produce energy for the organism, possess their own genetic material - mitochondrial DNA and are transmitted exclusively by the mother.
Next Story
