Bioethics and Human Embryo Research

Scientists in the U.S., China and the U.K. report in three new Cell and Cell Stem Cell papers that they have recreated key aspects of the human uterine lining in tiny lab devices, allowing donated human embryos and stem‑cell‑derived embryoids to implant and develop long enough for researchers to watch the full implantation process in real time. The teams, led in part by Jun Wu at the University of Texas Southwestern and Peter Rugg‑Gunn at the Babraham Institute, used the system to compare tissue from women with and without miscarriages and to screen more than 1,100 existing drugs for their potential to prevent implantation failure, while bioethicists warn the same technology could someday enable much more extensive embryo development outside the body (ectogenesis).