All articles tagged with #three parent baby
Nature reports that a small number of clinics are advertising mitochondrial replacement therapy (MRT) to boost IVF success for people without mitochondrial disease. The procedure remains experimental, with few robust clinical data, and experts urge it only within trials due to uncertain benefits and potential risks, while supporters emphasize patient choice and possible fertility gains.
In 2016, a Jordanian couple seeking to spare their child from Leigh syndrome traveled to Mexico for spindle nuclear transfer, resulting in the first live birth using mitochondrial replacement. The baby, a boy, carries nuclear DNA from the parents and donor mitochondrial DNA, a small contribution intended to prevent the disease. The case demonstrated the procedure’s feasibility but sparked ongoing ethical and regulatory debate, including U.S. bans and a fragmented international landscape governing this form of genetic intervention.
UK scientists successfully used a three-parent IVF technique called Mitochondrial Donation Treatment to deliver eight healthy babies free from severe mitochondrial diseases, raising both hope and ethical questions about genetic intervention.