The Healthy Embryo

Public attention on embryo research has never been greater. Modern reproductive medicine technology and the use of embryos to generate stem cells ensure that this will continue to be a topic of debate and research across many disciplines. This multidisciplinary book explores the concept of a ‘healthy' embryo, its implications on the health of children and adults, and how perceptions of what constitutes child and adult health influence the concept of embryo ‘health'. The concept of human embryo health is considered from preconception to pre-implantation genetic diagnosis to recent foetal surgical approaches. Burgeoning capacities in both genetic and reproductive science and their clinical implications have catalysed the necessity to explore the concept of a ‘healthy' embryo. The authors are from five countries and 13 disciplines in the social sciences, humanities, biological sciences and medicine, ensuring that the book has a broad coverage and approach. - Introduces the new concept of a ‘healthy' embryo promoted through increasing genetic and other testing capacities - sensitivity to issue, framework for future research, impact on conceptions of ‘health' of children and adults - Covers internationally relevant legal and professional implications of the concept of the ‘healthy' embryo, including legal and professional obligations of clinicians and researchers Contents Preface; Acknowledgements; Contributor bioprofiles; Part I. Human Embryos: 1. What are human embryos and how do we know? Jane Maienschein and Jason Scott Robert; 2. Human embryos: donors' and non-donors' perspectives on embryo moral status Jackie Leach Scully, Christoph Rehmann-Sutter and Rouven Porz; 3. Property, privacy, and other legal constructions of human embryos Radhika Rao; 4. Informed consent for the age of pluripotency and embryo triage: from alienation, anonymity, and altruism to connection, contact, and care Charis Thompson; Part II. Almost Human Embryos: 5. Interspecies somatic cell nuclear transfer José Cibelli and Kai Wang; 6. Parthenogenesis and other strategies to create human embryos for stem cell research and regenerative medicine Paul De Sousa; 7. Creating humanesque embryos Françoise Baylis; Part III. 'Healthy' Human Embryos: 8. A visual dialogue on 'healthy' human embryos from the 16th to 21st centuries Lianne McTavish; 9. Social determinants of 'health' of embryos Roxanne Mykitiuk and Jeff Nisker; 10. Preconceived human embryos and taking care of their 'health' Isabel Karpin; 11. Public understandings of a 'healthy' embryo: a citizen deliberation on preimplantation genetic diagnosis Susan M. Cox and Jeff Nisker; Part IV. 'Healthy' Human Embryos and Research: 12. Donating fresh versus frozen embryos to stem cell research: in whose interests? Carolyn McLeod and Françoise Baylis; 13. Informed choice in embryo donation for research purposes Angela White and Robyn Bluhm; Part V. 'Healthy' Human Embryos and Reproduction: 14. Making embryos healthy or making healthy embryos: how much of a difference between prenatal treatment and selection? David Wasserman and Adrienne Asch; 15. The ethics of preventing disease by preventing people Daniel M. Weinstock; 16. 'Healthy' human embryos and symbolic harm Elisabeth Gedge; 17. Saviour siblings, disease avoidance and embryo health Sally Sheldon and Stephen Wilkinson; Index. Contributors Jane Maienschein, Jason Scott Robert, Jackie Leach Scully, Christoph Rehmann-Sutter, Rouven Porz, Radhika Rao, Charis Thompson, José Cibelli, Kai Wang, Paul De Sousa, Françoise Baylis, Lianne McTavish, Roxanne Mykitiuk, Jeff Nisker, Isabel Karpin, Susan M. Cox, Jeff Nisker, Carolyn McLeod, Angela White, Robyn Bluhm, David Wasserman, Adrienne Asch, Daniel M. Weinstock, Elisabeth Gedge, Sally Sheldon, Stephen Wilkinson