Couple request embryo testing for cholesterol disorder
UK doctors are expected to receive permission to help a couple avoid passing on a hereditary condition that causes very high blood cholesterol to their children. The Times newspaper reported that a team lead by Paul Serhal, of University College London, will be soon be granted a licence to carry out the treatment. This will enable the couple to undergo IVF, and to test their embryos to select those free from the gene mutation that causes familial hypercholesterolaemia (FH).
One in 500 people in the UK has inherited the mild form of FH, although many of those with the condition are thought to remain undiagnosed. The condition can increase the risk of a heart attack in men under fifty by ten-fold. However, if treated through diet, exercise, lifestyle changes and - in some cases - with statin drugs, this risk can be drastically reduced. FH also increases the risk of strokes and blood vessel failure, which can lead to limb amputations.
In contrast to the mild form of the condition, which affects people who inherit just one copy of the faulty gene, there is also a severe form of FH that affects children who inherit a 'double dose' of the mutation. This form of the disease leads to very high levels of cholesterol from the age of around five, and can often cause death in childhood. Unlike the mild form, it does not always respond well to treatment with statins or other drugs.
The couple seeking treatment at UCL both have mild FH, which they discovered only after having a daughter with the severe form of the disease. There is a 25 per cent risk that any subsequent child will also inherit the severe form of FH, who, unlike their first child, may not respond well to treatment. There is also a 50 per cent chance that they will pass on the mild form of the condition to their next and subsequent child, and a 25 per cent chance that each will be unaffected.
One in 500 people in the UK has inherited the mild form of FH, although many of those with the condition are thought to remain undiagnosed. The condition can increase the risk of a heart attack in men under fifty by ten-fold. However, if treated through diet, exercise, lifestyle changes and - in some cases - with statin drugs, this risk can be drastically reduced. FH also increases the risk of strokes and blood vessel failure, which can lead to limb amputations.
In contrast to the mild form of the condition, which affects people who inherit just one copy of the faulty gene, there is also a severe form of FH that affects children who inherit a 'double dose' of the mutation. This form of the disease leads to very high levels of cholesterol from the age of around five, and can often cause death in childhood. Unlike the mild form, it does not always respond well to treatment with statins or other drugs.
The couple seeking treatment at UCL both have mild FH, which they discovered only after having a daughter with the severe form of the disease. There is a 25 per cent risk that any subsequent child will also inherit the severe form of FH, who, unlike their first child, may not respond well to treatment. There is also a 50 per cent chance that they will pass on the mild form of the condition to their next and subsequent child, and a 25 per cent chance that each will be unaffected.
Sources:
Designer baby fear over heart gene test
The Times
15/12/07
http://www.timesonline.co.uk/tol/news/uk/science/article3054249.ece
Designer baby fear over heart gene test
The Times
15/12/07
http://www.timesonline.co.uk/tol/news/uk/science/article3054249.ece