The Ethics of Synthetic Embryos: A Legislative Challenge.

Scientists have created synthetic human embryos using stem cells, which could provide a crucial window on the impact of genetic disorders and the biological causes of recurrent miscarriage. The lab-grown entities fall outside current legislation in the UK and most other countries, raising serious ethical and legal issues. The structures do not have a beating heart or the beginnings of a brain, but include cells that would typically go on to form the placenta, yolk sac and the embryo itself. There is no near-term prospect of the synthetic embryos being used clinically.