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 Scientists had previously only been able to study human embryos as
a culture in a lab dish until the seventh day of development when
they had to implant them into the mother's uterus to survive and
develop further.
But using a culture method previously tested to grow mouse embryos
outside of a mother, the teams were able to conduct almost hour by
hour observations of human embryo development to see how they
develop and organize themselves up to day 13.
"This it the most enigmatic and mysterious stage of human
development," said Magdalena Zernicka-Goetz, a University of
Cambridge professor who co-led the work. "It is a time when the
basic body shape is determined."
The work, covered in two studies published on Wednesday in the
journal Nature and Nature Cell Biology, showed how the cells that
will eventually form the human body self-organize into the basic
structure of a post-implantation human embryo.
 "Embryo development is an extremely complex process and while our
system may not be able to fully reproduce every aspect of this
process, it has allowed us to reveal a remarkable self-organizing
capacity ... that was previously unknown," said Marta Shahbazi, a
researcher at Britain's University of Cambridge who was part of the
research teams.
Robin Lovell-Badge, an expert in stem cells at Britain's Francis
Crick Institute who was not directly involved in this work, said it
provided "a first glimpse" of how the early human embryo develops at
the point when it would usually implant in the womb lining, becoming
invisible and impossible to study. 14-DAY LIMIT
As well as advancing human biology expertise, the knowledge gained
from studying these developments should help to improve in-vitro
fertilization (IVF) treatments and further progress in the field of
regenerative medicine, the researchers said.
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But the research also raises the issue of an international law
banning scientists from developing human embryos beyond 14 days, and
suggests this limit may have to be reviewed.
Zernicka-Goetz, who spoke to reporters in London, said a wealth of
new information could be discovered if human embryos could be grown
in a lab dish for just a few days more.
"Longer cultures could provide absolutely critical information for
basic human biology," she said. "But this would of course raise the
next question - of where we should put the next limit."
Sarah Norcross, director of the Progress Educational Trust, a
charity which campaigns for people affected by infertility and
genetic conditions, agreed that the research raised questions around
the 14-day limit and said the international scientific community
should "decide whether it is necessary and desirable" to extend it,
and if so, by how much.
"A public discussion of the rights and wrongs of this would need to
follow before any change in law could be contemplated," she told
Reuters.
(Editing by Richard Balmforth)
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