Mitochondrial diseases are inherited from the mother and are associated with substantial impairment and reduced life expectancy. A new IVF (in vitro fertilization) technique provides the opportunity for a healthy child using functional mitochondria from a donor egg, the nucleus of a mother’s egg for maternal DNA, and sperm for paternal DNA.
Mitochondria are small structures located in cells that convert nutrients from the food we eat into an energy molecule that can be used to power a cell’s activity and chemical processes. Traditional in vitro fertilization combines an egg and sperm in a clinical setting. Once the fertilized egg develops into a ball of cells it can be implanted into the wall of the uterus of a mother or surrogate mother. In a new IVF technique a healthy embryo can be created from the cells of three parents. The nucleus of the egg from a mother with impaired mitochondria is transferred into a donor egg with healthy, functional mitochondria. Fertilization occurs when the sperm fuses with the hybrid egg formed by the combination of cell material from the mother and the egg donor. While this technique holds great promise for parents at risk of mitochondrial disease, the process requires special approval because at the molecular level this can be viewed as germline gene therapy since the new combination of nuclear and mitochondrial DNA will be passed on to future generations.
Ethical Dilemma in Science
Should in vitro fertilization use DNA from three parents to create a healthy baby?
Is it appropriate to combine DNA from more than just the parents in order to create a baby without a genetic condition?
Under what circumstances, would it be appropriate to alter the DNA from a parent in order to create a baby without a genetic condition?
0:00 Introduction
1:36 Heather has two mommies
2:31 baby born with THREE parents
3:37 In vitro fertilization
5:28 Mitochondria
7:15 Mitochondrial diseases
8:57 How Scientists did it
12:12 Germline v somatic gene therapy
15:06 Religious response
16:31 Alternative with donor egg
17:15 Alternative with standard IVF
18:09 Alternative with amniocentesis
19:08 Ethical Dilemma in Science
Recommended Readings:
Hadden & Fuller (2023) Three’s a crowd: First British baby with THREE parents born – marking ‘groundbreaking leap’ for IVF. The U.S. Sun. https://www.the-sun.com/health/8080495/first-british-baby-three-parents/
Sample (2015) ‘Three-parent’ babies explained: what are the concerns and are they justified. The Guardian. https://www.theguardian.com/science/2015/feb/02/three-parent-babies-explained
Sample (2023) First UK baby with DNA from three people born after IVF procedure. The Guardian. https://www.theguardian.com/science/2023/may/09/first-uk-baby-with-dna-from-three-people-born-after-new-ivf-procedure
References:
Caldwell (2023) UK Bishop denounces new IVF method resulting in Frist baby born with DNA of three people. OSV News. https://www.osvnews.com/2023/05/15/uk-bishop-denounces-new-ivf-method-resulting-in-first-baby-born-with-dna-of-three-people/
Children’s Hospital of Philadelphia. Mitochondrial Disease. https://www.chop.edu/conditions-diseases/mitochondrial-disease
Cleveland Clinic (2023) Mitochondrial Diseases. https://my.clevelandclinic.org/health/diseases/15612-mitochondrial-diseases
Fairyington (2020) ‘Heather has two mommies’ is still relevant 30 years later. The New York Times. https://www.nytimes.com/2020/04/17/parenting/heather-two-mommies.html
Frazier. (2019) Embryo Gene Editing: Changing life as we know it. The GIST. https://the-gist.org/2019/05/embryo-gene-editing-changing-life-as-we-know-it/
Gaudium IVF (2017) A quick guide on the IVF journey with egg donors. https://www.gaudiumivfcentre.com/blog/a-quick-guide-on-the-ivf-journey-with-egg-donors/
Haas (1998) Begotten not made: A Catholic view of reproductive technology. https://www.usccb.org/issues-and-action/human-life-and-dignity/reproductive-technology/begotten-not-made-a-catholic-view-of-reproductive-technology
Jones (2023) UK birth of ‘three-parent baby’ came at a high moral cost, Catholic Bioethicists warn. Catholic News Agency. https://www.catholicnewsagency.com/news/254289/uk-birth-of-three-parent-baby-came-at-a-high-moral-cost-catholic-bioethicists-warn
KJK Hospital Fertility Research & Gynaec Centre. (2022) Preimplantation Genetic Diagnosis. https://www.kjkhospital.com/preimplantation-genetic-diagnosis/
National Human Genome Research Institute. (2023) Mitochondria. https://www.genome.gov/genetics-glossary/Mitochondria
Suomalainen & Battersby (2018) Mitochondrial diseases: the contribution of organelle stress responses to pathology. Nat Rev Mol Cell Biol. 19(2):77-92. https://www-nature-com.arcadia.idm.oclc.org/articles/nrm.2017.66
The Lily Foundation. https://www.thelilyfoundation.org.uk/
Thomas, L. (2023) Stages of IVF. News medical & Life Sciences. https://www.news-medical.net/health/Stages-of-IVF.aspx
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