Baby boy born in Mexico by combining DNA from three people

A baby has been born using world-first technology, combining the DNA from three people.

The boy was born five months ago in Mexico, scientists using the technique to prevent the baby from inheriting a mitochondrial disease known as Leigh Syndrome from his mother.

The technique involved removing some of the mother’s DNA from an egg, and leaving the disease-causing DNA behind.

The healthy DNA was slipped into a donor’s egg, which was then fertilised.

As a result, the baby inherited DNA from both parents and the egg donor.

In Australia this type of technique is not permitted under the current legislation.

Some Australian scientists say the findings need to undergo a full peer review to validate the data, because without that there will always be some doubt about the procedure.

But Chairman of the Australian Mitochondrial Disease Foundation Doug Lingard has described it as an ‘exciting major advance, which could for the first time provide women with mitochondrial mutations the choice of having children not affected by debilitating disease.’

IVF specialist Gab Kovacs explained on 3AW Breakfast the science behind it.

He said the procedure hasn’t been approved in Australia yet and said a small amount of genetic material is used from the third parent.

Click PLAY to listen back: