A groundbreaking procedure involving DNA transfer has protected eight young children from serious genetic conditions. The technique, known as pronuclear transfer, replaces defective mitochondria from their mothers with those from a female donor.
Mitochondrial defects, affecting about 1 in 5,000 people, can cause blindness, seizures, and even death. To combat this, the UK approved a similar procedure in 2015 for women at high risk of passing on these conditions.
During pronuclear transfer, eggs are fertilized with sperm using IVF, followed by the removal of the nucleus. The mother’s nucleus is then inserted into a donor egg, resulting in an embryo that inherits most of its DNA from its biological parents and mitochondrial DNA from the donor.
Although a small amount of the mother’s mitochondria may still be passed on, this technique has shown promising results in saving young children from devastating genetic diseases.
Source: https://www.newscientist.com/article/2488587-babies-made-using-three-peoples-dna-are-free-of-hereditary-disease