Scientists working at the The Francis Crick Institute (the Crick) in London have applied for permission from the Human Fertilisation and Embryology Authority (HFEA) to use new genome editing techniques on human embryos. The researchers hope these new techniques will lead to a better understanding of which genes are essential in successful embryo development, the researchers said in a statement.
The request comes months after a team in China became the first to announce they had altered the genes of human embryos, the Guardian reported. The controversial methods will only be allowed to be used for basic research, and the embryos will not be legally allowed to be studied for more than two weeks or implanted into women to achieve pregnancy. Despite these restrictions, some have called for a global moratorium on the use of genome editing in human embryos. If approved, the knowledge could help doctors improve embryo development after in vitro fertilization (IVF), or even to create new fertility treatments.
"To provide further fundamental insights into early human development we are proposing to test the function of genes using gene editing and transfection approaches that are currently permitted under the HFE Act 2008. We also propose to use new methods based on CRIPSR/Cas9, which allows very specific alterations to be made to the genome. By applying more precise and efficient methods in our research we hope to require fewer embryos and be more successful than the other methods currently used," said Kathy Niakan, a group leader at the Crick. "Importantly, in line with HFEA regulations, any donated embryos would be used for research purposes only. These embryos would be donated by informed consent and surplus to IVF treatment."
The introduction of the CRISPR-Cas9 system could allow researchers to look at the developing genome in a more precise way than ever before. The technique could also one day be used in stem cell research and have applications for a number of diseases.
