Q&A: creating human sperm
Updated on 08 July 2009
Researchers led by Professor Karim Nayernia at Newcastle University and the NorthEast England Stem Cell Institute (NESCI) answer some of the most common questions about in vitro derived (IVD) sperm.
Will you be making babies from this sperm?
No. The IVD sperm will not and cannot be used for fertility treatment. This is prohibited by UK law.
This work is not being done to make babies. The research is being done to investigate why some people are infertile. It could also lead to a better understanding of how genetic diseases are passed on from one generation to the next.
Could you make a baby from this sperm?
In theory this might be possible as the IVD sperm show all the characteristics of sperm – that is they act and look like sperm. However, this work is not being done to make a baby which is prohibited by law.
Does this mean an end to men?
No. In this technique IVD sperm could only be produced from an embryo containing a male (Y) chromosome.
However, researchers believe that the issue does need to be debated and legislated for. As work progresses and results improve at Newcastle and elsewhere, it may, in theory, be possible to develop IVD sperm from embryonic stem lines which have been stored.
How long before this will be available as a treatment?
Sperm developed from embryonic stem cells cannot be used as a fertility treatment.
This work is in early stages and much more investigation needs to be done on understanding the process and for testing the suitability and safety of IVD sperm as a possible fertility treatment. However, Professor Nayernia believes that in 10 years this could be a treatment offered for example, to young boys who have to undergo chemotherapy which currently often leaves them infertile.
When combined with other pioneering stem cell techniques, specifically somatic cell nuclear transfer, it could also allow men who are currently infertile the chance to have a child which is genetically their own but again, this will be many years away - at least a decade.
The researchers do believe that given the speed of progress in this area of work, legislation needs to be put in place sooner rather than later to allow for the technique to be licensed as a treatment in the future for infertile men.
Why have you called them IVD sperm?
IVD sperm is the name researchers have adopted to show the sperm are developed in a lab rather than in a human. It comes from In Vitro Derived (similar to IVF – in vitro fertilised).
