IVF mixup: white couple have black babies.
Explore the source record for details and available documents.
Adult↗
Biomedical subjects
M Spriggs
Publications and source records attributed to M Spriggs.
Therapeutic cloning research and ethical oversight.
Cloning Trevor, a story about therapeutic cloning research, appeared in the June issue of The Atlantic Monthly. The story gives a human face to the people whom therapeutic cloning could benefit. It presents an argument for government funding and it puts the usual calls for a moratorium on embryonic stem cell research to allow for more debate, in a less favourable light. The story also highlights some problems with ethical oversight.
Adrenoleukodystrophy↗
The hexamethonium asthma study and the death of a normal volunteer in research.
Explore the source record for details and available documents.
Administration, Inhalation↗
The Perruche judgment and the "right not to be born".
The French government has given in to public pressure and overturned a controversial legal ruling which recognised the right of a disabled child to seek damages. Most notably, the ruling, widely described as establishing a child's right "not to be born", had provoked "outrage" amongst groups defending the rights of the disabled and led to a ban on prenatal scans by French gynaecologists. Once again, only parents will be able to seek damages but some people think the ruling has been misinterpreted.
Child↗
Lesbian couple create a child who is deaf like them.
A deaf lesbian couple who sought a sperm donor with a family history of deafness in order to have a child they hoped would be deaf have attracted a lot of criticism. They have been criticised for deliberately creating a deaf child, for denying their child a hearing aid, and for raising the child in a homosexual household.
Child↗
"Saviour siblings".
The Victorian Infertility Treatment Authority has given permission to allow tissue typing in combination with preimplantation genetic diagnosis. This is a new application of IVF. Not only will it allow parents to select an embryo free from serious genetic disease it will allow them to simultaneously select for a match so that the umbilical cord blood of the resulting baby can provide stem cells to treat an existing sibling who has a disease.
Child, Preschool↗
Genetically selected baby free of inherited predisposition to early-onset Alzheimer's disease.
The application of preimplantation genetic diagnosis to select against early-onset Alzheimer's has been criticised on several grounds. Some critics think it is wrong to reject an embryo because it may develop a disease later on in middle age and some question whether a woman who will soon become incapacitated and unable to provide for her child should be a candidate for assisted reproductive technology.
Alzheimer Disease↗
IL-17 stimulates granulopoiesis in mice: use of an alternate, novel gene therapy-derived method for in vivo evaluation of cytokines.
IL-17 is a novel cytokine secreted principally by CD4+ T cells. It has been shown to support the growth of hemopoietic progenitors in vitro; however, its in vivo effects are presently unknown. Adenovirus-mediated gene transfer of the murine IL-17 cDNA targeted to the liver (5 x 10(9) plaque-forming units (PFU) intravenous) resulted in a transiently transgenic phenotype, with dramatic effects on in vivo granulopoiesis. Initially, there was a significant increase (fivefold) in the peripheral white blood count (WBC), including a 10-fold rise in the absolute neutrophil count. This was associated with a doubling in the spleen size over 7-14 days after gene transfer, which returned to near baseline by day 21, although the white blood cell count remained elevated. There was a profound stimulation of splenic hemopoiesis as demonstrated by an increase in total cellularity by 50% 7 days after gene transfer and an increase in hemopoietic colony formation. A maximal increase in frequency of high proliferative potential colonies (HPPC) (11-fold) and CFU-granulocyte-macrophage (GM) and CFU-granulocyte-erythrocyte-megakaryocyte-monocyte (GEMM) (CFU) (6-fold) was seen on day 3 after IL-17 gene transfer. Both CFU and HPPC remained significantly elevated in the spleen throughout day 21, but at reduced levels compared with day 3. Bone marrow CFU and HPPC were elevated on day 3 only by 75% and 25%, respectively, without changes in total cellularity. Thus, murine IL-17 is a cytokine that can stimulate granulopoiesis in vivo. Since IL-17 is principally produced by CD4+ T cells, this cytokine could have therapeutic implications in AIDS-related bone marrow failure and opportunistic infections.
3T3 Cells↗
Autonomy in the face of a devastating diagnosis.
Literary accounts of traumatic events can be more informative and insightful than personal testimonials. In particular, reference to works of literature can give us a more vivid sense of what it is like to receive a devastating diagnosis. In turn this can lead us to question some common assumptions about the nature of autonomy, particularly for patients in these circumstances. The literature of concentration camp and labour camp experiences can help us understand what it is like to have one's life-plans altered utterly and unexpectedly. Contrary to common views of autonomy which have difficulty in characterising autonomous action when long-standing assumptions are suddenly lost, these examples show that autonomy is possible in these circumstances. We need a theory of autonomy which can deal with traumatic events and is useful in the clinical context.
Dehumanization↗
Complete nucleotide sequence of the mouse CTLA8 gene.
The gene encoding the mouse cytotoxic T-lymphocyte-associated antigen 8 (CTLA8) has been cloned and its complete nucleotide (nt) sequence determined. Sequence and polymerase chain reaction (PCR) analysis indicated that the published CTLA8 sequence[Rouvier et al., J. Immunol. 150 (1993), 5445-5456] was of rat rather than mouse origin. The mouse CTLA8 gene contains two exons and one intron. The 5'flanking region contains several consensus motifs for binding to transcription factors and the 3' untranslated region (UTR) has AU-rich motifs associated with RNA instability. The putative exon sequences predict that the full-length mouse CTLA8 molecule contains 147 amino acids (aa) and shares 88% aa identity with rat CTLA8 and 57% aa identity to HSV13, an open reading frame (ORF) from herpesvirus saimiri (HVS).
Animals↗