Researchers Combine Monkey DNA From Two Mothers in One Egg

Scientists have produced monkeys with genetic material from two mothers, an advance that could help women with some inherited diseases have healthy children but which would raise a host of safety, legal, ethical and social questions if attempted in people.

Using cloning-related techniques, the researchers developed a way to replace most of the genes in the eggs from one rhesus macaque monkey with those from another, fertilized the eggs with sperm, transferred the resulting embryos into animals' wombs and produced four apparently healthy offspring.

The technique was developed for women who carry disorders caused by defects in a form of DNA passed only from females to their children, and the researchers said they hoped work will eventually translate into therapies for people.

"We believe this technique can be applied pretty quickly to humans and believe it will work," said Shoukhrat Mitalipov of the Oregon Health & Sciences University in Portland, who led the work published online Wednesday by the journal Nature.

Many scientists hailed the research as a technically impressive feat that could help many families rid themselves of a...