UK Authorities Look To Tighten Sex Selection Laws
Published Nov 05, 2001
London (CNSNews.com) - British authorities will review laws controlling sex selection of sperm and embryos after revelations that a new technique to help couples choose the sex of their child would not be regulated under U.K. law.
James Yeandel, spokesman for the government Human Fertilization and Embryology Authority (HFEA), said that a ban on most forms of sex selection has been in place since 1993.
"It reinforces social stereotypes and could result in gender imbalances," Yeandel said by phone Monday. Some believe that most couples wanting sex selection for non-medical reasons would choose to have a boy.
Despite the ban, several British clinics have been offering sex selection services due to the HFEA's limited mandate. The authority is only responsible for regulating techniques involving the storage of eggs and sperm and the creation of embryos outside the body.
One sperm sorting technique does not involve storage or outside embryo creation. Instead, a sample is spun at high-speed to separate out sperm carrying the female X chromosome and the male Y chromosome.
The process takes advantage of the fact that X-chromosome sperm are slightly more massive than Y-chromosome sperm, but is not very effective.
"This method is crude and expensive," Yeandel said.
The HFEA says there is evidence that three private clinics in London, Birmingham and Glasgow offer sperm sorting, which can cost up to $5,000.
The spinning technique has been available for several years, but a new process developed by an American company, Microsort, has prompted the HFEA to review its policy on sex selection.
"This new process was recently presented in Europe by Microsort. It uses a fluorescent dye that is very effective in sorting sperm," Yeandel said.
The technique is not yet available in Britain, "but it's out there ... it could potentially be offered," he said. Microsort's web site claims that 226 children in the United States and elsewhere have been born using the technique, which is 90 percent effective in producing girls and 73 percent effective in resulting in boys.
Microsort is an offshoot of the Genetics IVF Institute, which bills itself as the world's largest provider of infertility treatment and genetics services. A spokeswoman for the Fairfax, VA-based Microsort was not available for comment Monday.
More regulatory powers
Yeandel said that HFEA's examination of laws governing sex selection could result in the authority gaining more power to regulate the processes.
"We're conducting a review and may have recommendations for the Department of Health, and those recommendations may include the introduction of primary legislation," he said.
The spokesman said, however, that the review is at a "very early stage" and that it would be difficult to predict when it would be concluded.
The HFEA does allow sex selection in individual cases where the sex of a child is linked to hereditary diseases. Yeandel listed haemophilia and cystic fibrosis as two illnesses that have been used to justify sex selection.
British clinics that are allowed to perform sex selection use techniques that analyze the gender of test-tube embryos rather than sperm selection. Embryo analysis is more effective than sperm spinning, and is tightly regulated under U.K. law.
Sex selection has been criticised by several prominent organizations, including the Catholic Church and the British Medical Association.
A BMA spokeswoman said Monday that the organization had long-standing opposition to sex selection "on ethical grounds."
James Yeandel, spokesman for the government Human Fertilization and Embryology Authority (HFEA), said that a ban on most forms of sex selection has been in place since 1993.
"It reinforces social stereotypes and could result in gender imbalances," Yeandel said by phone Monday. Some believe that most couples wanting sex selection for non-medical reasons would choose to have a boy.
Despite the ban, several British clinics have been offering sex selection services due to the HFEA's limited mandate. The authority is only responsible for regulating techniques involving the storage of eggs and sperm and the creation of embryos outside the body.
One sperm sorting technique does not involve storage or outside embryo creation. Instead, a sample is spun at high-speed to separate out sperm carrying the female X chromosome and the male Y chromosome.
The process takes advantage of the fact that X-chromosome sperm are slightly more massive than Y-chromosome sperm, but is not very effective.
"This method is crude and expensive," Yeandel said.
The HFEA says there is evidence that three private clinics in London, Birmingham and Glasgow offer sperm sorting, which can cost up to $5,000.
The spinning technique has been available for several years, but a new process developed by an American company, Microsort, has prompted the HFEA to review its policy on sex selection.
"This new process was recently presented in Europe by Microsort. It uses a fluorescent dye that is very effective in sorting sperm," Yeandel said.
The technique is not yet available in Britain, "but it's out there ... it could potentially be offered," he said. Microsort's web site claims that 226 children in the United States and elsewhere have been born using the technique, which is 90 percent effective in producing girls and 73 percent effective in resulting in boys.
Microsort is an offshoot of the Genetics IVF Institute, which bills itself as the world's largest provider of infertility treatment and genetics services. A spokeswoman for the Fairfax, VA-based Microsort was not available for comment Monday.
More regulatory powers
Yeandel said that HFEA's examination of laws governing sex selection could result in the authority gaining more power to regulate the processes.
"We're conducting a review and may have recommendations for the Department of Health, and those recommendations may include the introduction of primary legislation," he said.
The spokesman said, however, that the review is at a "very early stage" and that it would be difficult to predict when it would be concluded.
The HFEA does allow sex selection in individual cases where the sex of a child is linked to hereditary diseases. Yeandel listed haemophilia and cystic fibrosis as two illnesses that have been used to justify sex selection.
British clinics that are allowed to perform sex selection use techniques that analyze the gender of test-tube embryos rather than sperm selection. Embryo analysis is more effective than sperm spinning, and is tightly regulated under U.K. law.
Sex selection has been criticised by several prominent organizations, including the Catholic Church and the British Medical Association.
A BMA spokeswoman said Monday that the organization had long-standing opposition to sex selection "on ethical grounds."
Originally published November 05, 2001.
