The Human Fertilisation and Embryology Authority (HFEA), which licenses all work carried out on human embryos in the UK, has decided to abandon its plans for a steep increase in licence fees. The authority proposed the fee changes earlier this year and sent them out for consultation before 30 June...
US scientists have managed to grow human retina cells in the laboratory, using stem cells taken from early human embryos. The team, based at biotech firm Advanced Cell Technology (ACT), hope that their achievement will lead to new treatments for some forms of age-related vision loss. Meanwhile, an Israeli team...
Italy may hold a referendum on whether its fertility laws should be overturned. The country's Radical Party have been collecting signatures and says that it is close to the required total of 500,000 signatures needed to call for the referendum. The drive to overturn the law has divided both main...
The first woman in the world to become pregnant following a transplant of her own frozen, thawed ovarian tissue has given birth to a healthy baby girl. In 1997, Ouarda Touirat, now aged 32, had parts of her ovaries removed before beginning treatment for Hodgkin's lymphoma that would leave her...
President Bush has told the United Nations (UN) that he supports a UN draft resolution that would ban all forms of human cloning. The President's speech, to the UN General Assembly, took his belief in 'human dignity' as its theme. He spoke first about the situation in Iraq, before moving...
The first patient in a gene therapy trial for Alzheimer's disease, 63-year-old Ron Shellady, was treated recently at Rush University Medical Centre in Chicago, US. The two-year study will assess the safety of the technique, on 6-12 participants with a mild to moderate form of the disease. The...
The UK's Royal Society is launching a year-long investigation into the potential of pharmacogenetics: drug treatments tailored to a person's genetic make-up. The study, headed by geneticist Sir David Weatherall, will look at when and if 'personalised medicine' will become a reality. It will also assess whether healthcare providers in...
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Ovarian transplant success is cause for celebration
by Dr Jess Buxton
This week, BioNews reports on the world's first baby born following a transplant of frozen, thawed ovary tissue. This is the first success for a technique that promises to benefit thousands of women who would otherwise lose their fertility forever. Ouarda Touriat, who underwent lifesaving cancer treatment that left her...