The United Kingdom voted recently to allow a controversial new in vitro fertilization technique, sometimes referred to in the media as “three-person babies,” making them the first country to explicitly allow the procedure.
The full name of the procedure, according to Science , is “mitochondrial DNA replacement therapy.” Mitochondrial DNA is inherited from the mother, and diseases from the mitochondria can take a variety of forms. The new therapy allows scientists to remove the disease-causing mtDNA and replace it with mtDNA from a healthy woman.
According to Popular Science , “So, swapping out unhealthy mitochondria could prevent deadly mitochondrial diseases such as heart, kidney, and liver failure, as well as muscular dystrophy.”
The bill legalizing the procedure passed the United Kingdom’s House of Commons 282-12 early in February; the bill was then passed in the House of Lords by a majority of 232 votes. Despite its overwhelming support, however, the bill has not been without controversy.
Interest groups in the United Kingdom, such as the Human Genetics Alert, were reported by BBC News to feel that “the move would open the door to further genetic modification of children in the future – so-called designer babies, genetically modified for beauty, intelligence or to be free of disease.”
Scientists have been quick to speak out against the idea, stating that legalizing this procedure within the United Kingdom could lead to a future where people chose their child’s hair and eye color.
David DeGrazia, a George Washington University philosophy professor with a specialty in Bioethics, told Popular Science , “The intention here is purely therapeutic. It’s to avoid certain diseases an embryo and then a baby can have as a result of mitochondria. Mitochondria don’t have anything to do with the characteristics that might be sought in a designer babies.”
The Catholic Church in the United Kingdom has spoken out against the therapy, saying that it’s destructive to embryos.
The United Kingdom is also not the only country to discuss the legality of this procedure. According to the Huffington Post , the FDA in the United States discussed the possibility of performing the procedure here, but no decision was reached.
“Experts say the techniques are likely being used elsewhere, such as in China and Japan, but are mostly unregulated.”
According to the Genetic Literacy Project , the procedure will be allowed in the United Kingdom under strict regulation.
“Researchers who wish to offer the service to couples still must apply for and receive a license from the country’s Human Fertilisation and Embryology Authority.”
What do you think about this new fertilization technique being studied in the United Kingdom?
[Image from Sandy Huffaker/Getty Images]
