On Tuesday, February 3, the news came that the House of Commons of the United Kingdom voted to legalize a new type of treatment that allows one to prevent the development of Mitochondrial Diseases!
What are Mitochondrial Diseases? These are, in part, very serious diseases and which often cause symptoms from birth. The disease is transmitted from mother to child and is caused by defective gene belonging to the mitochondria. Mother need not herself be sick because the number of mitochondria that will express the wrong genes will vary from individual to individual. Often a sick child comes unexpectedly.
What are mitochondria? These are own cell organelles and are found in all cells (in varying numbers). These account for the cell's ATP production (energy) and are therefore absolutely essential for normal cell function.
A cell consists of a cell nucleus where one finds DNA (chromosomes with many genes). This DNA contains the recipe for all the body's proteins and thus determines all of our characteristics and how we look. Around the nucleus are the organelles that initiate production and life cycle for the cell, browse also the mitochondria that supply the cell with energy.
What is the new method? The couple has to go through regular IVF treatment + that one needs a healthy woman as a “donor” (she also has to undergo stimulation and egg retrieval). Once the eggs have been extracted, the nucleus is removed from the “diseased eggs” and these are exchanged into the eggs of the healthy donor. Then regular fertilization with the man's sperm, embryo development and the return of a healthy embryo.
What has happened? One has received a fresh egg from another woman but removed the nucleus and inserted the nucleus of the woman who has egg with mitochondrial defects. Since it is the DNA that determines all characteristics then this egg becomes normal and genetically similar to the mother (who was wrong in the first place)
It's awesome! Here we see how modern biotechnology and assisted fertilization can make a difference. This is a huge step forward and I sincerely hope that the Norwegian authorities follow up!
