Here's the latest on Xtalks.com: The Human
Fertilisation and Embryology Authority in
the UK has approved a research proposal to
use gene editing in human embryos to further
understand the genetic basis of inherited
diseases. While the research could provide
valuable insight into mutations causing genetic
disease, some are concerned about the ethics of the gene editing technique.
Hello, I’m Sarah Massey – Life Science Blogger and Webinar Moderator for Xtalks.com – and welcome to this edition of Xtalks Vitals
The research is to be performed by a team of researchers at Francis Crick Institute
in London, England. The researchers hope that
a better understanding of the genes necessary
for normal embryonic development could lead
to treatments for inherited conditions such
as sickle cell disease and muscular dystrophy,
in the future.
The study investigators will be performing
gene editing on human embryos during the first
seven days after fertilization. During this
time, the embryo develops from a single-cell
fertilized egg into a multicellular blastocyst
consisting of 200 to 300 cells.
The researchers also hope to use the technique
to determine why infertility and miscarriages
are so common. Less than half of all fertilized
eggs develop to the blastocyst stage, with
25 percent of these eggs successfully implanting
into the wall of the uterus. Only 13 percent
of fertilized continue to develop after three
months of development. The gene editing
research will be conducted using donated embryos
which will be destroyed after seven days of
development.
Critics of the technique warn that this research
could pave the way for a future of so-called
designer babies, whose personal traits including
eye colour, height and intelligence could
be designed before birth.
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