London, England, Jun 27, 2007 / 09:29 am
Parliament is expected to debate a draft bill later this year that would allow scientists to create hybrid embryos for research as long as they are destroyed within two weeks.
Ministers say the creation of animal-human embryos - created by injecting animal cells or DNA into human embryos or human cells into animal eggs - will be heavily regulated.
They insist that the Human Tissue and Embryo Bill would make it illegal to implant “chimeras” - named after the mythical creature that was half man and half animal - into a woman’s womb.
The bill would allow the screening of embryos for genetic or chromosomal abnormalities that might lead to serious medical conditions, disabilities, or miscarriage. It would also permit doctors to check whether an embryo could provide a suitable tissue match for a sibling suffering from a life-threatening illness.