Three-parent babies: good or bad?

Only now have scientists involved in the practice disclosed that a study of the childrens long-term health is finally under way.

It is quite extraordinary, says British fertility pioneer Professor Lord Winston. Not only the lack of follow-up, but the way the whole thing was run. This was not about preventing deadly diseases, this was mainly about getting older women pregnant via a rather dubious method, trying to rejuvenate older eggs.

He is among many scientists who make a clear distinction between those experiments now outlawed and the proposals to allow three-parent babies in this country, which would be regulated.

Lord Winston believes there is a clear case for the plans to help those with a high risk of having children who inherit disorders such as muscular dystrophy caused by faults in the mothers mitochondria, the structures that supply energy to the bodys cells. The therapy can dramatically reduce the risk of children inheriting disorders of the heart, brain and muscle.

I think the case is self-evident and reasonable, says the emeritus professor of fertility studies at Imperial College London. This is about something that is unusual and will benefit a small number of patients. I know there are some people who think it is a slippery slope, that the next thing will be choosing intelligence or blond hair, but I dont think that. For 20 years, its been scientifically possible to have sex selection of embryos; we still dont allow it in Britain apart from for heritable diseases.

Scientists behind the technique emphasise that the DNA in question lies outside the nucleus of the cell, with no bearing on the childs personality or appearance.

None the less, ministers are braced for a fierce debate in the Commons and later in the Lords, as MPs and peers consider the regulations within a wider ethical and philosophical context.

Some opponents ask what right scientists have to play God. Others are set to explore more subtle moral questions: should doctors and scientists take decisions that could have an unknown impact on generations hundreds of years down the line?

There are also questions of identity. Under British law, egg and sperm donation can no longer be anonymous those born of such conceptions have the legal right to know where they came from, when they reach adulthood. But when it comes to mitochondrial transfer, second mothers will remain anonymous, under the draft regulations. Those who support the proposals point out that the third-party DNA contribution, while critical, is minuscule.

But critics suggest this is an attempt to diminish the significance of the contribution. Others suggest that such children ought to have the right to thank the woman who secured their health.

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Three-parent babies: good or bad?