US research claims they can detect disease risk in IVF embryos… but experts insist it’s a waste of money –

Experts say today that genes linked to a dozen serious diseases such as cancer, diabetes and heart disease can be traced in embryos.

The tests, if proven accurate, can be used by couples undergoing IVF to select the healthiest babies.

And there are fears that technology could be used to discover desirable traits such as stature and intelligence in “designer babies”.

Today, however, independent scientists have urged caution with the results, saying such a test would be a waste of money as they cannot definitively prove that an embryo will develop a disease.

For naturopathy research, Californian company MyOme analyzed the genes of 110 embryos from 10 couples undergoing IVF.

A more in-depth DNA analysis was also performed on the parents, allowing the team to predict the genetic makeup of the embryos.

The MyOme researchers were finally able to verify that their projections were correct by taking samples from 10 embryos born later, which were used in IVF cycles.

The results showed that the babies born had almost exactly the same genetic makeup as the team expected, and the predictions were 99% accurate.

Genomes were analyzed for the DNA fragments used to generate the “polygenic risk score,” Nature reports.

Professor Dusko Ilic, a stem cell scientist at King’s College London, said: “For prospective parents, the proposed test may be tempting.

And they can easily be tempted to spend the extra money to ensure their babies live a healthier life. However, the money would have been wasted.’

Polygenic risk testing is different from Preimplantation Genetic Diagnosis (PGD), which is legal in the UK.

PGD ​​is used to screen for about 500 diseases caused by a single genetic mutation, such as cystic fibrosis.

But diseases related to DNA quirks are often caused by multiple genes, which can also affect other parts of the body in different ways. Both lifestyle and environmental factors can also increase the risk of various diseases.

Polygenic risk scores are not currently available on the NHS, but their legal status in private clinics remains unclear.

Experts have repeatedly urged British couples not to retreat to the other side of the Atlantic for expensive treatments. The scan can cost around £1,000 for a single test.

Professor Ilic said the study is more robust than others touting the use of PRS for disease screening in embryos.

But the key issue, he said, is not the precision of the score, but simply how it shows the potential of the disease.

“None of the predictions can actually rule out disease and guarantee that a child will be free from these medical conditions,” he added. “So what’s the point?”

Dr. Francesca Forzano, a geneticist at Guy’s and St Thomas’ NHS Foundation Trust, said the study was full of unanswered questions.

He noted that the authors did not mention the genes analyzed or the sex of the embryos tested, which is an important factor for certain diseases such as breast and prostate cancer.

“The data and results presented are incomplete and need further explanation,” he said.

Dr. Forzano also accused the researchers of “changing money” when it comes to potential ethical issues.

“The real issue – the ethics of the practice – is being overlooked and dismissed as something that needs to be addressed in a counseling session with a medical geneticist,” he said.

‘This is a great success. A genetic counseling session is not the same as confirming a test, and it’s certainly not inappropriate.’

Professor Ewan Birney, Deputy Director General of the European Molecular Biology Laboratory, said he was “disturbed” by the idea of ​​using PRS for embryos.

“As a citizen, I feel uncomfortable with the wide variety of traits that can be factored into polygenic risk scores, and I don’t think it would be good for society to give parents visible control over these,” he said.

Professor Alastair Sutcliffe, a pediatrician at University College London, added that embryo PRS scores can have unintended consequences as families who have been traumatized by certain diseases in their past try to exclude them at all costs.

“It is possible that other polygenic conditions that were not studied had a higher prevalence in the remaining embryos, this is the law of undesirable outcomes,” he said.

“If a family has been traumatized by a strong family risk (for example, breast cancer), they will potentially focus on it unreasonably and then simply skip counseling.”