ABSTRACT

As the result of dramatic advances in molecular biology and reproductive medicine, gene therapy, although in its infancy, is becoming a viable option in the medical armamentarium. In this paper, we review and consider aspects of the medical and ethical issues concerning advances in artificial reproduction, frameworks for ethical analysis, and problems with oocyte donation. One area of special interest involves mitochondrial DNA (mtDNA) and recent proposals to treat mitochondrial diseases. In the current debate regarding the different possibilities for gene therapy, it is presupposed that genetic manipulations are limited to the nuclear genome (nDNA). Given recent advances in genetics however, the mitochondria genome of eukaryotic cells must be considered as well.