by A groundbreaking three-person IVF technique to prevent a devastating disease had led to the birth of eight babies in Great Britain.
The scientific method known as mitochondrial donation treatment is intended to prevent children with devastating mitochondrial diseases that are passed on by their mothers.
These diseases can be fatal and often lead to devastating damage to organs, including brain, muscles, liver, heart and kidney.
Four boys and four girls, including a number of identical twins, were delivered and everyone is good and another woman is currently pregnant.
The treatment of a team in Newcastle follows that developed the technology.
Of the eight born babies, three under six months are at the age of six to twelve months aged 12 to 18 months, one 18 to 24 months and one child over two years old.
Four boys and four girls, including a number of identical twins, were delivered and everyone is doing well (Newcastle Fertility Center/PA))
All babies are healthy and meet their milestones, according to the Newcastle on Tyne Hospitals NHS Foundation Trust, Newcastle University and Newcastle Fertility Center.
None of the eight babies shows signs of mitochondrial DNA disease, which usually affects around 5,000 births.
The scientists said that disease-causing mitochondrial DNA mutations that were taken up in three of the children are either not detectable or in levels that cause illness very unlikely.
The main laboratory method, which is used by the team, which is known as a pronuclear transfer (PNT), is to take the egg of an affected mother, a sperm from her partner and an egg from a donor that is free of illnesses.
The mother of a little girl born by mitochondrial donation said: “As a parents, we only wanted to give our child a healthy start of life.
“Mitochondrial donation IVF made this possible. After years of uncertainty, this treatment gave us hope – and then our baby gave us.
“We are now looking at them full of life and opportunities, and we are overwhelmed by gratitude. Science gave us a chance.”
The mother of a little boy added: “We are now the proud parents of a healthy baby, a real success with mitochondrial replacement. This breakthrough has lifted the heavy cloud of fear that once pulled out over us.
“Thanks to this incredible further development and support that we have received, our small family is complete.
“The emotional burden of mitochondrial diseases has been canceled, and in his place there is hope, joy and deep gratitude.”
Professor Sir Doug Turnbull from Newcastle University and part of the research team said: “Mitochondria diseases can have devastating effects on families.
“Today’s news offer many other women in whom this disease is passed on and now have the chance to grow up children without this terrible illness.”
In all cases, the Newcastle team used the PNT technology after the egg was fertilized.
For this purpose, scientists transplanted the nuclear genome (which contains all the properties of a person, such as hair colors and height and amount of it), with the mitochondrial DNA mutation into an egg that was donated by a woman who had been removed by a woman who was removed her nuclear genome.
Thanks to the procedure, the resulting baby inherits the nuclear DNA of its parents, but the mitochondrial DNA is mainly inherited from the donated egg.
The technology gives many more women in whom there is a risk that mitochondrial diseases will be passed on (Getty Images)
Scientific progress in this area prompted Parliament to change the law in 2015 in order to enable mitochondrial donation treatment.
Two years later, the Newcastle Clinic was the first and only national center to perform it, with the first cases approved in 2018.
Approval takes place on a case -by -case basis from the British human fertilization and embryology authority (HFEA).
The new findings on the eight births published in the New England Journal of Medicine show that all babies develop normally.
At the age of 18 months, tests in areas such as gross motif, fine motor skills, cognitive and social development as well as language skills are carried out to check whether the babies meet milestones.
The researchers will also check the children when they are five years old.
Professor Bobby McFarland, director of the highly specialized NHS service for rare mitocho -red service disorders at the Newcastle Hospitals NHS Foundation, said that he was confident that the children would develop normally.
He added: “If we take up with five non -subtle signs of problems, then we are really very clear that this will not be a problem.”
He added: “In my work … I see children in intensive care units in this country and that is not pleasant.
“It is very difficult for families to deal with these diseases, they are devastating …
“It is really amazing to see babies who were born in the end.”
Mary Herbert, professor of reproductive biology at Newcastle University, added: “PNT happens in the little hours of the morning – these long nights. And it paid off.
“It is fair to say that it is worthwhile. In science, the joy times are fleeting and short because they always think about what the next challenge is? How do we optimize it?”
She said that the light DNA mutations that can be seen in three of the children were “gone, far below the threshold that would cause diseases”.
Peter Thompson, Managing Director of the HFEA, said: “Ten years ago, Great Britain was the first country in the world to licensed mitochondrial donation treatment to avoid the handover of the disease to children.
“For the first time, families with severe inherited mitochondria disease have the possibility of a healthy child.
“Although it is still early, it is wonderful news that the mitochondrial donation treatment led to eight babies born.
“Only people who have a very high risk of passing on a serious mitochondrial disease to their children are entitled to this treatment in Great Britain, and every application for mitochondrial donation treatment is assessed individually in accordance with the law.”
Dr. Andy Greenfield from the University of Oxford said: “It is a triumph of scientific innovation in the IVF clinic one worldwide in the first place that the United Kingdom is an excellent environment in which IVF borders exceed; Micromanipulating methods with the Value-Valy subject, which the value competence had developed, through the micromanipulating methods and the valve of the clinic devices that developed and monitated in the clinic, in the clinic, in the clinic. become potentially for many years.
Beth Thompson, Executive Director of Politics and Partnerships at Wellcome, said: “This is a remarkable scientific achievement that has passed in the areas of emergence.
“The pioneering work behind the mitochondrial donation is a strong example of how Discovery research can change life.”
Professor Dagan Wells from the University of Oxford said the study had defined methods to avoid DNA diseases of mitochondrials, such as:
“A minority of patients cannot produce embryos that are free of mitochondrial diseases, and for women who may have healthy children in the future,” he added.
