In the UK, the first eight children have been born who were conceived using mitochondrial donation — a method in which a child’s body contains DNA from three people. This provides a chance to avoid severe inherited diseases passed down through the maternal line.
Since 2017, a clinic in Newcastle has been running approved trials of this technology. Of 39 participating women, 19 underwent the procedure, and seven have already become mothers. The method involves transferring the mother’s egg nucleus into a donor egg with healthy mitochondria. In this way, the child retains the parents’ genes, but is spared the risk of inheriting defective mitochondria. In most of the children, the level of “bad” DNA was under 5%, which is considered safe. Scientists continue monitoring the children until the age of five.
Previously, mitochondrial donation was used only in isolated experimental cases, without strict control and scientific assessment. Now, for the first time worldwide, the method has received official approval, has completed clinical trials under government supervision, and has been recognized by the international medical community. This brings the technique to a new, evidence-based level of effectiveness and safety, giving parents the possibility of having a healthy child.
