US weighs unknowns of 3-person embryo technique

(AP)—Genetic experts are warning the U.S. government that it could take decades to confirm the safety of an experimental technique that would create babies from the DNA from three people, with the aim of preventing children from inheriting some debilitating diseases.

The Food and Drug Administration heard from supporters and opponents of the provocative technique Tuesday, as the agency considers whether to approve testing in women who have defective genes linked to numerous inheritable diseases.

Preliminary testing in animals suggests that combining the DNA of two parents with a third female donor could allow these women to give birth to healthy children. But even supporters of the approach warned that researchers would have to follow the children for many years to gauge their health.

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