Human Embryos News and Research

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Forbidden fruit: Scientists venture into “embryoid” manufacturing

After working on stem cells for several years, scientists have now announced that they have found a way to synthesize structures that look like very primitive human embryos. While some hailed the discovery, others questioned the ethical basis of manufacturing synthetic humans.

12 Sep 2019

'Clock in a dish' provides new way to replicate developmental disorders

In early mammalian development, timing is everything. For healthy development to occur -- whether it be three weeks for a mouse or nine months for a human -- embryos follow the lead of oscillating genes, which turn on and off in precise cycles and trigger different development milestones. Oscillating genes are conductors keeping time in a symphony of growth.

29 Aug 2019

Despite failed promises, stem cell advocates again want taxpayers to pony up billions

Californians voted in 2004 to shell out billions of dollars in taxpayer money to fund cutting-edge stem cell treatments.

16 Aug 2019

Japanese scientists develop new method to construct 3D models from 2D images

Japanese scientists report in Pattern Recognition a new method to construct 3D models from 2D images. The approach, which involves non-rigid registration with a blending of rigid transforms, overcomes several of the limitations in current methods.

6 Aug 2019

Ancient epigenetic change deactivates some genes linked to cancer

An epigenetic change, a form of DNA control, that deactivates some genes linked to cancer late in human development has been conserved for more than 400 million years, new research led by the Garvan Institute of Medical Research suggests.

11 Jul 2019

New method to grow embryonic stem cells on a microfluidic chip

It's no surprise that using human embryos for biological and medical research comes with many ethical concerns. Correct though it is to proceed with caution in these matters, the fact is that much science would benefit from being able to study human biology more accurately.

29 Jun 2019

Biologists team up to identify underlying mechanism of yolk segregation from surrounding cytoplasm

The segregation of yolk from the surrounding cytoplasm in the very early fish embryo is a key process for the development of the fish larva.

10 May 2019

Will gene-editing of human embryos ever be justifiable?

World-leading medical ethicist Professor Arthur Caplan has published a series of recommendations with the aim of addressing worldwide concerns over gene editing of human embryos.

30 Apr 2019

Embryo selection for IVF can be optimized using artificial intelligence technique

A new artificial intelligence approach by Weill Cornell Medicine investigators can identify with a great degree of accuracy whether a 5-day-old, in vitro fertilized human embryo has a high potential to progress to a successful pregnancy.

5 Apr 2019

Gene editing and designer babies experiments face global moratorium

Powerful gene editing tools could soon face a global regulations on their use on human embryos, sperms or eggs.

20 Mar 2019

Gene editing regulations to be tightened

Last week a group of scientists from across the globe came together to sign a moratorium on gene editing in humans.

20 Mar 2019

Call for halt to human gene editing and designer babies experiments

Powerful gene editing tools could soon face a global regulations on their use on human embryos, sperms or eggs.

18 Mar 2019

Research on mosaic embryos gives new hope to people seeking infertility treatments

Not every embryo contains 46 perfect chromosomes. Some have more, others have fewer. The result is a common abnormality known as aneuploidy, which occurs in as many as 80 percent of human embryos.

5 Mar 2019

The gene-edited twins born in China may have altered cognition and memory

A new study has fuelled further concerns over the controversial gene-editing experiment that was performed in China last year.

22 Feb 2019

Controversial gene editing of embryos stopped by the Chinese authorities

The Chinese government has stopped the gene editing works of Professor He Jiankui calling it unlawful and unethical. Notably Professor Jiankui had recently claimed to have produced the world’s first pair of twins who have their genetic codes edited so that they would never be infected with HIV.

29 Nov 2018

ASHG reaffirms cautious but proactive approach recommended in its 2017 position statement on germline genome editing

Given this morning's reports of infants possibly born in China whose genomes were edited by CRISPR-based technology, the American Society of Human Genetics (ASHG) reaffirms the cautious but proactive approach recommended in its 2017 position statement on human germline genome editing, published in The American Journal of Human Genetics.

26 Nov 2018

Participation project calls for relaxing research ban on germline interventions

Are genetic defects allowed to be repaired by intervening with sperm or egg cells, or even human embryos? Thanks to genetic scissors such as CRISPR/Cas, such interventions in the germline could soon become a medical reality.

19 Nov 2018

Cells retain memory of chemical signals to which they are exposed

We all start out as a clump of identical cells. As these cells divide and multiply, they gradually take on distinct identities, acquiring the traits necessary to form, for instance, muscle tissue, bone, or nerves. A recent study from Rockefeller scientists offers new insight into how these cellular identities are cultivated over the course of development.

9 Nov 2018

Researchers aim to create more authentic organoids for drug testing, transplantation

Human embryos start as a tiny mass of cells that are all the same. The first step in growing from a homogenous ball of cells into a complex individual with distinct organs and tissues is for the cells to divide into distinct populations.

10 Oct 2018

The feds’ termination of a tiny contract inflames bitter fight over fetal tissue

Federal health officials announced late last month they had terminated their contract with a company that supplies human fetal tissue for medical research and were checking that similar contracts, as well as studies conducted with that tissue, comply with federal law.

8 Oct 2018