Issue 148 (11 March 2002)

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No need to panic over IVF baby studies

11 March 2002 - by Dr Jess Buxton

This week's BioNews reports on two new studies of babies born following assisted conception. One of the studies shows that these babies tend to be smaller than usual, and the other shows that they may have a increased risk of birth defects. What do these findings mean for couples undergoing...[Read More]

IVF and ICSI linked to birth defects and low birth weight

11 March 2002 - by BioNews

Two studies of babies conceived using in vitro fertilisation (IVF) and intracytoplasmic sperm injection (ICSI) were published in the New England Journal of Medicine last week. One of the studies reports that children have an increased risk of birth defects and the other shows that low birth weights are more...[Read More]

Saudi doctors transplant womb

11 March 2002 - by BioNews

Doctors in Saudi Arabia reported last week that they had performed the world's first human uterus transplant, raising hopes for childless couples whose only chance of a baby might be to use a surrogate. The operation was regarded by the doctors as successful and 'encouraging', despite the fact that complications...[Read More]

Therapeutic cloning used in mice

11 March 2002 - by BioNews

Scientists from the Whitehead Institute for Biomedical Research in Massachusetts, US, report that they have used stem cells created using therapeutic cloning techniques to repair an inherited disease in mice. Although the technique is not yet ready for use in humans, the scientists say that the report is encouraging. Skin...[Read More]

Did Celera cheat?

11 March 2002 - by BioNews

Celera Genomics, the private US company who participated in the sequencing of the human genome, has been accused of cheating by three of the scientists who participated in the publicly-funded rival project. They say that Celera used data from the public project and so has not actually published its own...[Read More]

Goodbye Dolly

11 March 2002 - by BioNews

Dr Alan Colman, one of the scientists involved in the creation of Dolly the sheep, has decided to leave Britain because of a lack of research funding. He says that he is finding it impossible to find the money needed to fund his stem cell research project looking for cures...[Read More]