Ethical principles and the HFEA's donation review

At a public meeting on 19 October, the Human Fertilisation and Embryology Authority (HFEA) decided to move to a 'flat rate' system of monetary compensation for egg donors. The HFEA also decided to leave the regulations governing egg sharing substantially unchanged. Critics have already raised concerns about the quality of the discussion at the meeting, I want to look at a quite different issue: the use made by the HFEA of the idea of 'ethical principles'... [Read More]

Men 'caused menopause' by seeking younger women

Men's preference for younger partners has led to the development of the menopause in women, according to a recently published theory in PLOS Computational Biology.... [Read More]

Irish Government to appeal landmark surrogacy ruling

The Irish Government is to appeal a recent court ruling that allowed the genetic mother of twins born to a surrogate to be listed as their legal mother on their birth certificates... [Read More]

Sperm donor anonymity: Canadian Supreme Court will not hear woman's appeal

The Supreme Court of Canada has declined to hear a case brought by a woman conceived by IVF using donated sperm that would have ended donor anonymity in the province. The decision is likely to be the end of a lawsuit that was commenced five years ago.... [Read More]

Event Review: It's All in the Genes - Medical Genetics in Obstetrics and Gynaecology

Medical genetics has changed how we think about diagnosis and treatment in almost every field of medicine. At an evening event hosted by the Royal Society of Medicine (RSM), medical genetics teamed up with obstetrics and gynaecology to explore the impact of genetics on the diagnosis of ovarian and breast cancer.... [Read More]

Your thoughts about donor conception, conditionality and adoption

Should gamete donors be allowed to place conditions on who receives their donation? And should those considering having children via donor conception be encouraged to adopt instead?... [Read More]

Turkish womb transplant patient miscarries

Doctors have terminated the pregnancy of 22-year-old Derya Sert, the first woman to receive a womb transplant from a deceased donor.... [Read More]

Time-lapse embryo imaging boosts IVF success, clinic claims

A new technique for monitoring embryo health could increase the chance of IVF couples having a healthy baby, according to researchers at a private fertility clinic... [Read More]

Scotland: 'Fairer and faster' IVF access limited to non-obese, non-smoking, teetotalers

The Scottish government has approved criteria which include new restrictions on access to state-funded IVF but which also aim to end the 'postcode lottery' faced by many couples with fertility problems... [Read More]

Response to Ben Saer

In addressing egg-donation dad-to-be Ben Saer's points in his BioNews article, it is hard to know where to start. Good parenting is of course supportive and protective, but it does not resolve the desire of some people to know more about who helped create them... [Read More]

Radio Review: You and Yours - How IVF Became Big Business

Kate Silverton is well known for reading the news on BBC, so I was interested to listen to her short report on how IVF has become such a big business... [Read More]

Human embryonic stem cells created via cloning

Embryonic stem cells have been created from human skin cells for the first time by US scientists using a cloning technique... [Read More]

What you think about donor conception

The Progress Educational Trust (PET)'s project 'When It Takes More Than Two', supported by the Wellcome Trust, sought to clarify public and professional understanding of donor conception by focusing on the different parties involved... [Read More]

Enough of Nuffield – let's stop sidelining donors

The recent Nuffield report makes two disappointing recommendations - that anonymous donation should not be reintroduced, and that the state should encourage those who donated pre-2005 to come forward. Both positions are obstructive to donors, past and present... [Read More]

Liverpool fertility clinic imports sperm after fall in donors

A Liverpool fertility clinic has been forced to import sperm from Manchester and London after a significant fall in local donations... [Read More]

Book Review: Reproductive Technologies as Global Form - Ethnographies of Knowledge, Practices and Transnational Encounters

Reading 'Reproductive technologies as global form' provides insights into what ethnographers find out about 'national IVF-cultures' during their fieldwork, but it also invites us to engage with theoretical considerations of an academic discipline... [Read More]

Patenting parthenotes: High Court asks if parthenotes are 'human embryos' under the Biotech Directive

The UK's High Court has asked the Court of Justice of the European Union (CJEU) to clarify if human parthenotes fall under the definition of a human embryo for the purposes of patentability... [Read More]

Film Review: 2012 International Science and Engineering Visualisation Challenge

Visually gripping and engaging new methods are increasingly used to convey scientific principles and developments to the public. The journal Science and the National Science Foundation annually hold an international competition to recognise the best examples of projects that bring scientific information to life.... [Read More]

Podcast: Being - The Donor-Conceived Perspective

A podcast produced as part of the When It Takes More Than Two project organised by the Progress Educational Trust... [Read More]

Turkish donor womb recipient becomes pregnant

One of the first women to receive a womb transplant is pregnant, the treating hospital has disclosed. A spokesperson said that early test results were 'consistent' with signs of pregnancy.... [Read More]