Chicago clinic creates diseased embryonic stem cells
A Chicago IVF clinic has created 12 embryonic stem cell lines with genetic defects which it will offer to researchers. Dr Yury Verlinsky, of the Reproductive Genetics Institute, used discarded embryos donated by clients who wanted to screen their embryos. He says that his team has created diseased stem cell lines for beta thalassaemia, neurofibromatosis type 1, Marfan syndrome, myotonic dystrophy, Fragile X syndrome and Fanconi anaemia.
Dr Verlinsky plans to create more stem cell lines since he can screen for more than 100 diseases with pre-implantation genetic diagnosis. A report in the Boston Globe did not mention whether the stem cell lines would be sold or offered for free. Specialists in these diseases said that these new stem cell lines would be useful, but that they were not a revolutionary step forward. For instance, scientists have already created a mouse which is a good model for Marfan syndrome.
Creative commons
reproductive revolution
- Prescribe morning-after pills to young teenagers, say US pediatric group - November 30, 2012
- Bahrain sentences protest docs to prison - November 28, 2012
- Terry Pratchett assisted suicide documentary wins International Emmy - November 27, 2012
More Stories
Does The Pill make women more fearful and anxious?
More than 150 million women worldwide use oral contraceptives. Combined OCs (COCs), made up of synthetic hormones, are the most...
A holistic look at the effect of the Pill on women
Debates about the ethical dimension of the Pill are like smoke-filled 19th Century battlefields “where ignorant armies clash by night”....
The Pill increases risk of depression amongst young women by 130%
According to a recent study in the journal Epidemiology and Psychiatric Sciences, women using birth control pills may have as...
4 women die in Indian sterilization camp. Authorities very sorry.
Double-puncture laparoscopy procedures are very popular amongst Indian women who want permanent sterilization. “The surgery is preferred over other sterilisation...
New study revives fears of ‘spermageddon’
Sperm counts around the world appear to have halved between 1973 and 2018. According to a study in the journal...
What is the limit for posthumous sperm donation?
A baby has been born in the United Kingdom from 26-year-old sperm. His 47-year-old father, Peter Hickles, describes it as...