The United Kingdom took a step Friday toward being the first country in the world to allow a pioneering in vitro fertilization technique using DNA from three people that could prevent mitochondrial diseases but that also raises significant ethical issues . One in 6,500 babies in the United Kingdom is born with mitochondrial disorder , which can lead to serious health issues such as heart and liver disease , respiratory problems and muscular dystrophy . Problems with mitochondria , the `` powerhouse '' cells of the body , are inherited from the mother , so the proposed IVF treatment would mean an affected woman could have a baby without passing on mitochondrial disease . But the cutting-edge IVF technique , which involves transferring nuclear genetic material from a mother 's egg or embryo into a donor egg or embryo that 's had its nuclear DNA removed , raises ethical questions . The new embryo will contain nuclear DNA from the intended father and mother , as well as healthy mitochondrial DNA from the donor embryo -- effectively creating a `` three-parent '' baby . The amount of donor DNA in the mitochondria will , however , be much less than the parental DNA in the nucleus , which determines the baby 's characteristics . IVF-related birth defects may originate with moms , not treatment . The UK government plans to consult on draft regulations on the fertility treatment later this year , with the intention of putting the measure before parliament next year . At the moment , only unaltered eggs and embryos can be used for in vitro fertilization . `` Mitochondrial disease , including heart disease , liver disease , loss of muscle coordination and other serious conditions like muscular dystrophy , can have a devastating impact on the people who inherit it , '' said the UK 's chief medical officer , professor Dame Sally Davies . Since scientists have developed `` ground-breaking new procedures '' that could prevent these diseases being passed on , Davies said , `` it 's only right that we look to introduce this life-saving treatment as soon as we can . '' The government says public consultation shows there is `` overall support '' for the treatment . But Dr. David King , director of Human Genetic Alert , a London-based watchdog group , opposed use of the technique Friday -- saying it opened the door to the creation of `` designer babies '' -- and disputed the results of the public consultation , saying not enough weight has been given to online polling . `` These techniques are unnecessary and unsafe and were in fact rejected by the majority of consultation responses , '' he said in a statement . `` It is a disaster that the decision to cross the line that will eventually lead to a eugenic designer baby market should be taken on the basis of an utterly biased and inadequate consultation . '' King told CNN that conventional egg donation already allows a mother to bear a child without passing on a mitochondrial disorder , so the benefit of the new technique would only be to allow the baby to be genetically related to her . `` While I can understand that , that 's not a medical benefit to anybody -- and you have to weigh it against the risks of invasive techniques that will clearly carry a risk to the child , '' he said . Could 'personhood ' bills outlaw IVF ? There 's also a `` risk to society at large , '' he said , because once the ethical line over modification of human DNA has been crossed , the door will be opened to `` the next step and the next step after that . '' `` That 's why governments around the world over the last 20 years have said 'we wo n't allow you to genetically engineer human beings , ' `` he said . Even if approved by lawmakers , more research is needed to ensure that the procedure actually works in humans and can be carried out safely , King said . The government 's announcement Friday prompted a slew of UK media headlines -- and will probably continue to divide the scientific community . The UK-based Nuffield Council on Bioethics , which carried out a six-month inquiry into the ethical issues around the technique , concluded that the health and social benefits of living free from mitochondrial disorders meant that `` on balance ... if these novel techniques are adequately proven to be acceptably safe and effective as treatments , it would be ethical for families to use them . '' Its working group also concluded that `` mitochondrial donation does not indicate , either biologically or legally , any notion of the child having either a 'third parent , ' or 'second mother . ' `` But University of Notre Dame law professor O. Carter Snead , a bioethicist who specializes in the governance of science , medicine and biotechnology , urged the United Kingdom to `` proceed slowly and cautiously '' given the `` unresolved safety and ethical questions '' around the new technique . `` Little is known about the short- and long-term genetic effects of this procedure on children born with its aid , '' he said . `` It would be an ironic tragedy if this procedure were rushed from bench to bedside , only to harm the very children it was meant to help . `` Moreover , there remain serious questions about the ethics of conceiving children with three genetic progenitors or 'parents . ' `` IVF 'co-pioneer ' Robert Edwards dead at 87 .
`` Little is known about the short- and long-term genetic effects , '' says a U.S. bioethicist . Government takes a step toward allowing an IVF technique involving DNA from 3 people . It is intended to prevent mitochondrial disorders being passed on from mother to child . Comment: