Scientists create mice with TWO biological fathers for the first time – a breakthrough that could pave the way for gay men to have children in the future
Science is one step closer to allowing two men to reproduce without the need for a surrogate.
Japanese researchers created seven mice with two male birth parents, using skin cells from a male mouse to form a viable egg and then fertilize it.
They hope that this research will push forward treatments for infertility. But it also paves the way for men in same-sex relationships to have a child without needing a surrogate — which has been happening in increasing numbers recently.
“This is the first case of making robust mammalian oocytes from male cells,” said Katsuhiko Hayashi of Kyushu University, who led the research. He went on to say that it could be functional in humans within a decade
A Japanese research team has successfully created seven mice pups using eggs made from the cells of male mice and fertilized by sperm from other males (file photo)
Researchers, who presented their findings at the Third International Summit on Human Genome Editing in London, wanted to develop a treatment for Turner syndrome.
The condition only affects women. It occurs when they have an X chromosome that is completely or partially missing from their genetic makeup.
Women generally have two X chromosomes, while men have one X and one Y.
These chromosomes are first developed in the womb and determine whether a fetus will undergo male or female development.
Women born with only one X chromosome are often infertile, have delayed puberty, are smaller, and have an increased risk of heart or learning disabilities.
Japanese researchers hope to develop a stem cell treatment to remedy infertility associated with the condition.
They created stem cells using eight-week-old mice, choosing those that had dropped a Y chromosome for some reason.
Scientists then manipulated the cells in a way to copy the remaining X chromosome and create a cell with two X genes – what would usually be considered a female cell.
“The biggest trick of this is the duplication of the X chromosome,” said Dr Hayashi.
They turned those cells into eggs and used sperm from male mice to fertilize them in the lab.
The process led to the birth of more than half a dozen healthy mouse pups.
Dr. Hayashi told the new scientist he believes the door is now open to children born of two fathers.
Now his team hopes to replicate the same process with human cells.
‘Purely technically it will be possible [in humans] even in 10 years,” he said The protector.
‘I don’t know if they will be available for reproduction.
‘That is not only a question for the scientific education, but also for [society].’
Other experts have described the research as groundbreaking, but say there’s still a long way to go before two male males can have a child without the need for a female.
More than 70,000 women in America suffer from Turner syndrome, or about one in 2,000.
The demand for surrogate mothers in America has exploded in recent years, in part due to an influx of same-sex couples seeking children.