A team of scientists from the University of Bologna in Italy has developed a new technique for freezing human eggs that improves the survival rate after thawing. The researchers, who published their results in the latest issue of the journal Human Reproduction, say they achieved fertilisation rates comparable to those...
A biotech company is about to launch its umbilical cord blood cell storage service in the UK. For a fee of £600, parents will be able to store blood stem cells from their newborn baby's umbilical cord for up to 20 years. Blood stem cells, also present in the bone...
The use of animal organs for human transplant operations (xenotransplantation) is unlikely to solve the organ shortage problem in the near future, according to the third annual report of the UK Xenotransplantation Interim Regulatory Authority (UKXIRA). The report highlights problems with long-term rejection of animal organs by the human immune...
Most people support genetics research aimed at developing new diagnostic tests and cures for human diseases, according to a new poll published last week. Over 1000 people took part in the survey, carried out by MORI for the UK's Human Genetics Commission (HGC). Although 90 per cent of those interviewed...
US company Celera Genomics is to share a $58m (£40m) grant with the Baylor College of Medicine, Texas, to read the entire DNA sequence of the rat. Data from the rat genome project, which is being funded by the US National Institutes of Health (NIH), will be released weekly into...
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Banking on the future
by Juliet Tizzard
This week's BioNews reports on news that a company has launched a new service offering storage of cord blood to parents of new-born babies. Dubbed 'the ultimate in health insurance', the service will enable children suffering from blood disorders such as leukaemia to receive a blood cell transplant using their...