First UK baby born using three people’s DNA

A groundbreaking IVF procedure was performed by doctors in Newcastle which has allowed for the birth of the first ever UK baby using three people’s DNA.

A new technique, known as mitochondrial donation treatment (MDT) which was pioneered by doctors at the Newcastle Fertility Centre, allows for a baby’s biological parents to use their DNA as well as a donors when undergoing IVF treatment. 

The new method, which was announced to be successful today, uses tissue from the eggs of healthy donors to create IVF embryos that are free from harmful mutations their mothers carry and are likely to pass on to their children.

Additionally, due to the embryos combining sperm and egg from the biological parents with tiny structures called mitochondria from the donors egg, the resulting baby has DNA from the mother and father as usual alongside a small amount of the donors genetics. The technique has coined the phase ‘three-parent babies’, though more than 99% of the DNA in the newborns comes from the mother and father.

The drive to begin research into this area spawned from helping to assist women with mutated mitochondria to have babies without the risk of passing on genetic disorders. All babies inherit all their mitochondria from their mother, so harmful mutations can become severe.

For affected women, contraception that is done in a ‘natural’ way is often a gamble – some babies might be born healthy, but others may develop progressive, fatal diseases. Current research shows, around one in 6,000 babies are affected by mitochondrial disorders.

Doctors at Newcastle clinic have not released details of births from its MDT programme, amid concerns that specific information could compromise patient confidentiality. However, in response to a freedom of information request by The Guardian, the UK’s Fertilisation and Embryology Authority has confirmed that a small number of babies have now been born in the UK.

Sarah Norcross, Director of the Progress Educational Trust, said: ‘News that a small number of babies with donated mitochondria have now been born in UK is the next step, in what will probably remain a slow and cautious process of assessing and refining mitochondrial donation.’

Dr James Hopkisson, Medical Director at TFP Fertility UK, one of the UK’s leading IVF and fertility specialists, said: ‘This is exciting and welcome news. Those families that have benefited from this technology must be very happy, as mitochondrial disease has no cure and is a challenging illness. 

‘There have been comments that those children born following the use of this technology will need close follow up over their lifetime to ensure that there are no ongoing health issues related to the technique or the disease that it has treated.’ 

Image: Fé Ngô