On 4 August, the Food and Drug Administration (FDA) instructed “fertility doctor”, John Zhang, to stop marketing three-parent IVF [1] [2]. He was involved in the birth of a Jordanian child through three-parent IVF last year (see three-parent IVF: birth, uncertainty but no long-term follow-up).
Since then, to circumvent American legislation, which does not authorise such procedures, John Zhang has managed a clinic in Mexico, linked to his centre in New-York (see Three-parent IVF to rejuvenate eggs: a lucrative market). Whilst not practising three-parent IVF on American soil, he nevertheless promotes this technique and puts forward a dubious marketing argument, according to the FDA.
Note from Gènéthique:
In the United States, human embryo research is not illegal provided that Federal funds are not used to finance it. However, the implantation of a “handled” embryo in a woman’s uterus, in order to develop, is prohibited.
[1] In-Vitro Fertilisation
[2] One baby, 3 DNA, 3 transgressions
Washington times, Linda A Johnson (4/08/2017)