Since the US Supreme Court overturned Roe v Wade in 2022, (see BioNews 1147), discussion of the fate of embryos created via IVF has become entangled with discussion of abortion legislation (see BioNews 1149 and 1159). Large numbers of cryopreserved embryos are stored in facilities in the USA and elsewhere, their status (and exact numbers) uncertain.
In many countries, including the UK, IVF embryos used in research can only be cultured for a maximum of 14 days from fertilisation (not counting periods during which they are cryopreserved). When this '14-day rule' was was originally formulated, this limit was hypothetical, but in recent years it has become technically feasible to culture human embryos up to 14 days. Whether or not the 14-day rule should be extended is just one of many questions that surround the ethics of storing and using embryos, in both research and treatment contexts.
In a comment piece in the New York Times – the first instalment in a three-part series – Anna Louie Sussman discusses develoments in biology, ethics, law and public attitudes that make deciding the ultimate fate of embryos more challenging, but perhaps also more urgent, than ever before. Sussman also explores this topic, and related issues, in an accompanying video featuring bioethicists Dr Insoo Hyun and Dr Vardit Ravitsky.