Wed, 26 Mar 2008 10:35:52 -0400
http://www.BioNews.org.uk =
B i o N e w s 450 =
Week 18/3/2008 - 24/3/2008
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C O N T E N T S: =
1 C O M M E N T A R I E S
* Reflecting on the role of PET and BioNews
* Choosing children: Reflections on the regulation of embryo testing =
2 N E W S D I G E S T
* MPs to be given free vote on parts of new embryo and fertility law
* 'Therapeutic cloning' treats Parkinson's in mice
* Parkinson's disease gene discovery
* Australian couple sue over embryo test 'failure'
* Folate levels may affect sperm quality =
3 R E C O M M E N D S
* Television, conferences and further reading =
***Welcome to the 450th issue of BioNews, which sees the start of a special=
series of expert 'Commentaries', commissioned to mark nine years of inform=
ing and encouraging debate in areas raised by human genetics, assisted repr=
oduction and embryo research. This week, it is the turn of Dr Colin Gavagha=
n, Lecturer in Medical Law and Ethics at the University of Glasgow and Prof=
essor Marcus Pembrey, founding and current Chair of Progress Educational Tr=
ust (the UK charity that publishes BioNews).*** ____
1 C O M M E N T A R I E S =
* REFLECTING ON THE ROLE OF PET AND BIONEWS: =
We publish BioNews issue 450 as the new UK Human Fertilisation and Embryolo=
gy Bill heads from the Lords to the House of Commons. A lot has happened in=
the fields of human genetics, assisted reproduction and embryo research si=
nce BioNews 400, including the rejuvenation of PET! A year on, we have our =
full complement of staff. PET director, Sarah and communications officer, S=
andy are in the thick of it, having run two influential debates already thi=
s year, with two more by the end of May (see 'Recommends' for details). As =
always, BioNews has brought you the relevant news and comment each week. Ed=
itors, Jess and Kirsty and the BioNews volunteers they guide are doing a gr=
eat job, and it is a pleasure to report the successful launch of BioNews in=
ternships this year in association with University College London. Continui=
ng the educational theme, scientific information officer, Ailsa is writing =
the schools' science packs for the Jeans for Genes appeal and booklets for =
the Galton Institute.
As some UK leaders of the Roman Catholic faith use their Easter message =
to criticise the new Human Fertilisation and Embryology Bill as a 'monstrou=
s attack on human rights, human dignity and human life', it is worth rememb=
ering that 2008 is the 30th anniversary of the birth of Louise Brown, the w=
orld's first baby born after in vitro fertilisation (IVF), thanks to the pi=
oneering research of Britain's Bob Edwards and the late Patrick Steptoe. IV=
F has brought joy to millions of couples challenged by sub-fertility and, i=
n the last18 years through pre-implantation genetic diagnosis, the restorat=
ion of reproductive confidence to families threatened by genetic disease. T=
his is not, of course, to say there are no sensitive issues to debate in th=
e new Bill. Many of these have been highlighted in reports and commentaries=
in BioNews over the last few years leading up to the new Bill.
So what is the role of PET and BioNews in all this? It is primarily to i=
nform these debates and others that arise in the fields of human genetics, =
reproduction and stem cell research. People are entitled to their own perso=
nal beliefs, but not entitled to their own personal facts. Life does not b=
egin at conception - livingness per se sails through from the previous gene=
ration in the form of that fully functioning cell, the ovum. We all have di=
rect cellular continuity with the origin(s) of life on this planet. Your l=
ife as opposed to someone else's life is a different concept that relates t=
o personhood, the origins of which are indeed open to debate. DNA is not th=
e molecule of life, as it is sometimes called - it is the molecule of hered=
itary difference. Individual people cannot be defined by a unique combinati=
on of their DNA and the genes it encodes, as demonstrated by identical twin=
s - unless of course you don't regard a co-twin as an individual person.
The human genome is not the only genome within us - to stay alive we nee=
d a vast number of bacteria in our gut each with its genome. All cells of o=
ur body have many mitochondria in the cytoplasm that surrounds the nucleus. =
Mitochondria are tiny energy-producing structures vital to cell function th=
at have their own DNA molecule. Evolutionarily they are enslaved primitive =
bacteria with their own genetic code. A type of assisted conception under d=
evelopment for families suffering mitochondrial diseases so as to avoid tra=
nsmission of mutant mitochondrial DNA does not create a child with three pa=
rents any more than a kidney transplant creates a person with four parents!=
However, many scientific 'facts' are provisional and certainly there are m=
any examples of assertions by scientists that have been proved wrong in tim=
e (t
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