DNA-ngerous

The Central London Hatchery and Conditioning Centre is, in short, a human factory. Babies are grown in test tubes, with their traits and lifestyles predetermined.

While some are born in a high caste, destined for beauty and high social standing, the lower caste embryosAn unborn or unhatched offspring in the process of development. are cloned in bulk - up to 11,000 from one ovary - for mindless work and drudgery.

Of course, this is only fiction. It sets the scene for the society of Aldous Huxley's novel Brave New World, where citizens ingest a forced chemical happiness called "soma" and are conditioned to accept their "inescapable social destinies", with no semblance of free will.

When Huxley wrote Brave New World in 1931, he was describing an abstract dystopiaThe opposite of utopia (an imaginary vision of a perfect world). The term dystopia comes from Greek and literally means bad place.. Now, the dilemmas confronted in the book are becoming a reality.

On Tuesday, the fertility regulator confirmed that Britain's first three-parent baby had been born using a new pioneering technique designed to prevent children being born with mitochondrial diseases.

DefectiveNot working. mitochondriaSmall organs within nearly all types of human cell that generate much of the cell's energy. Often called the 'powerhouse of the cell'. are passed down through mothers, and are incurable. Affecting one in every 6,000 babies, mitochondrial disorders can be fatal within hours of birth.

The mitochondria exist in almost every cell of the body, and work by converting food into energy. In defective mitochondria, this process cannot take place, leading to heart failure, brain damage and blindness.

The three-parent method works similarly to IVFIn vitro fertilisation is a technique used to help people with fertility issues have a baby., but healthy mitochondria are taken from a healthy donor's egg and combined with the sperm and egg of the two main biological parents. Since mitochondria carry a small amount of genetic material - around 37 genes out of the 20,000 we all have - the embryo carries DNADeoxyribonucleic acid is the material in an organism that carries genetic information. from the mother, father and donor.¹

The technique, known as Mitochondrial Replacement Therapy, has been floated for more than a decade, but it has been used on fewer than five babies.

Some have raised concerns that there may be serious long-term unforeseen health effects, particularly from a potential mismatch between nuclear DNA and mitochondrial DNA.

Furthermore, many feel that this procedure signals a step into uncharted waters. Although the UK Department of Health insists that the techniques do not fall under "genetic modification", a number of leading scientists disagree.

Babies who have their genetic makeup altered to remove genes which cause disease are referred to as "designer babies". Some believe that "editing" human embryos in any way will open the floodgates for parents to "design" their ideal baby before birth, referring to it as a "line in the sand".

But others say such techniques are an inevitable part of our future. Genetic testing, which allows prospective parents whose children may be at risk of heart disease, diabetes and schizophreniaA mental illness often accompanied by delusions and hallucinations. The term derives from two Greek words meaning "divided" and "mind". to screen their embryos before undergoing IVF with the healthiest ones, is already being offered by private companies.

And in response to those who insist the technique is "playing God", many have wondered whether it may be unethical to withhold a preventative cure to such a debilitating disease from potential future sufferers.

Yes: We have crossed the point of no return. Many prominent scientists see this technique as a form of genetic engineering. The decision to legalise the technique could open the floodgates for eugenicsThe idea that human beings should be improved through genetic engineering. In the past, eugenics has generally involved killing people who are deemed "inferior". and designer babies.

No: We should make the health of babies our first priority. This technique could allow mothers who carry defective mitochondria to have healthy children, preventing suffering and heartache. It would be unethical to refuse to use this technique.

Or... The UK Department of Health has excluded Mitochondrial Replacement Therapy from its definition of genetic engineering, which means although we are getting closer to crossing the line, we have not crossed it yet.