Scientists hail new ‘3 parent baby’ technique

The timing of such a report is crucial as the Government prepares to push ahead with legislation which would make the UK the first country in the world to create babies with genes from three biological parents despite strong opposition over ethical and safety concerns.

The plans are backed by many UK scientists and by families who have suffered from inherited disorders.

But a growing number of critics say the process crosses an ethical line by manipulating DNA in ways that will be passed down generations.

Stuart Newman, professor of cell biology and anatomy at New York Medical College, has expressed concern that pairing up different genes in an arbitrary fashion could lead to developmental or physiological malfunctions.

And Professor Evan Snyder, who chairs the scientific panel advising the US Food and Drug Administration on mitochondrial transfer, this week said there were still too many safety issues to approve the technique.

Legislation in the UK is expected to be laid before Parliament within weeks, with a vote due as early as January.

However, any new research which could potentially reduce the risks of the technique could help push the crucial amendments to the Human Fertilisation and Embryology Act forward.

The legislation aims to create babies born free of serious inherited diseases such as muscular dystrophy which come from the mothers faulty mitochondria the batteries that power cells.

One method currently being trialled in UK laboratories involves taking genetic material from inside the mothers egg and transferring it into a healthy egg donated by another woman, which does not contain the faulty DNA.

This egg is then fertilised with the fathers sperm.

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Scientists hail new '3 parent baby' technique