Global concern as scientists create first part-human, part-monkey embryos

 

A wave of concern is building up over the creation of part-human, part-monkey embryos by scientists.

The scientists, a US-Chinese team, injected human stem cells which have the ability to develop into many different body tissues into macaque embryos.

The development has raised a fresh round of debate into the ethical nature of these experiments. The BBC reports that other so-called mixed-species embryos, or chimeras, have been produced in the past; with human cells implanted into sheep and pig embryos.

The scientists were led by Prof Juan Carlos Izpisua Belmonte of the Salk Institute in the US. Prof. Belmonte is believed to have helped make the first human-pig hybrid in 2017. He believes that the latest experiment could help address the severe shortage in transplantable organs; as well as help understand more about early human development, disease progression and ageing.

“These chimeric approaches could be really very useful for advancing biomedical research not just at the very earliest stage of life, but also the latest stage of life. Ultimately, we conduct these studies to understand and improve human health,” he stated.

Further, he disclosed that the study had met the current ethical and legal guidelines.

However, a number of scientists have raised concerns about the experiment. They argue that while the embryos in this case were destroyed at 20 days; others could try to take the work further. Consequently, they have called for a public debate over the implications of creating part human/part non-human chimeras.

One of the opposing scientists, Dr Anna Smajdor; a lecturer and researcher in biomedical ethics at the University of East Anglia’s Norwich Medical School, told the BBC that the research posed “significant ethical and legal challenges”.

“The scientists behind this research state that these chimeric embryos offer new opportunities; because ‘we are unable to conduct certain types of experiments in humans’. But whether these embryos are human or not is open to question,” she stated.

Also quoted was Prof Julian Savulescu, director of the Oxford Uehiro Centre for Practical Ethics; who doubles as co-director of the Wellcome Centre for Ethics and Humanities, University of Oxford. In his opinion, the research opens Pandora’s box to human-nonhuman chimeras.

“These embryos were destroyed at 20 days of development. But it is only a matter of time before human-nonhuman chimeras are successfully developed; perhaps as a source of organs for humans. That is one of the long-term goals of this research,” he added.