British scientists have allowed genetically modified human embryos – Rosbalt.RU

February 1, 2016, 15:54 | Science | Genetics | UK

 Researcher Institute named Francis Crick (UK) Kathy Niakan received a license to laboratory research that suggests including modification of the genome (human) embryo. This was reported by the British Office for the Human Fertilisation and Embryology (HFEA).

Such a license is granted in Europe for the first time. It is noteworthy that the condition for issuing the document was ethical conduct of research and the inadmissibility of the implantation of genetically modified embryos to women.

Kathy Niakan in its ochred reported that permission to edit the human genome it is necessary to develop measures to combat infertility and causes of miscarriages.

Director of the Institute named Francis Crick Paul Nurse welcomed the decision to issue the license. “Proposals doctor Niakan study is important for understanding how to develop a healthy human embryo, and enhance our understanding of the IVF procedure through monitoring the earliest stages of human development – from one to seven days,” – he said.

Donors perform patients undergoing IVF – excess embryos produced during the procedure, after obtaining the full informed consent of the donors will be used in the study.

Now, the team doctor Niakan must still get approval of the Ethics Committee, and only after that researchers can begin work.

 Chinese scientists have confirmed that they were able to modify genes in human embryonic

As reported, in early March 2015 in the scientific circles rumors that a number of Chinese scientists and their American colleagues have conducted a series of experiments, editing and replacement of defective genes in human embryos. Last April, the rumors proved to be true – the Chinese geneticists led Junjie Huang from the University of Sun Yat-sen in Guangzhou published an article in the journal Protein & amp; Cell, in which they described the results as a whole rather unsuccessful attempts to adapt rapidly gaining popularity genome editing system CRISPR / Cas9 to manipulate human DNA.