title: Weigh and wait: the prospect of mitochondrial gene replacement.
abstract: Mitochondrial DNA transfer has recently received attention from physicians. The transfer techniques place genetic material from the egg nucleus of a woman with a mitochondrial DNA mutation into a healthy donated egg from which the nuclear DNA was removed. This technology intends to reconstruct a mitochondria-competent egg to produce a baby. Three approaches: (1) pronuclear transfer; (2) metaphase II spindle transfer (ST); and (3) polar body (PB) transfer, have been proposed and applied in animal models with very low levels of heteroplasmy. Because there is no curative treatment for patients with mitochondrial dysfunction, the UK government has allowed the use of this pioneering technique to prevent the transmission of rare and devastating mitochondrial diseases. Despite general safety in the observation period, this technology involves germline modification, raising scientific and ethical questions in the public. In this review, we focus on this unprecedented technology and discuss its clinical application in the future.
authors.affiliation: a Research Center for Translational Medicine , Shanghai East Hospital, Tongji University School of Medicine , Shanghai, China.
authors.forename: Liang
authors.initials: L
authors.lastname: Xu
authors.affiliation: b Department of Obstetrics and Gynecology , Shanghai East Hospital, Tongji University School of Medicine , Shanghai, China.
authors.forename: Rui
authors.initials: R
authors.lastname: Shi
mesh_terms: D000818:Animals; D004272:DNA, Mitochondrial; D005260:Female; D018014:Gene Transfer Techniques; D006801:Humans; D009865:Oocytes / Q000378:metabolism*; D027724:Reproductive Techniques, Assisted
chemical_list: D004272:DNA, Mitochondrial
keywords: Mitochondria; PB transfer; pronuclear transfer; spindle transfer