The fertility watchdog has been asked by Public Health Minister, Anne Milton, to conduct a consultation with the public for regulating a new law so as to combat a genetic disease, a recent report has revealed.

It has been found that a team of scientists has developed a new procedure known as three-parent IVF. The controversial technique is found to be banned in the country currently, which made the Department of Health to take public votes to confirm its acceptability.

In order to get success in the research into this matter as well as get a deeper knowledge about the procedure’s benefits, the Wellcome Trust’s director, Sir Mark Walport, declared that they would grant £4.4 million from £5.8m, which is the cost of a new centre to be built at the Newcastle University for research of the disease.

The report says that the mitochondrial disease, defects in mitochondria surrounding cell nucleus, is hereditary and is found in almost 100 infants each year. It is passed from the maternal line to babies and even leads to death of newborns at times.

The procedure introduced by scientists, i. e. three-parent IVF, involves three parents’ genetic material, including mother, father and a female donor. As per the technique, the nucleus of affected woman's egg is removed and inserted into donor’s egg having healthy mitochondria. It is then fertilized with the father’s sperm. Following the procedure, a baby is created who possesses the characteristics of mother and father as well as few of the donor’s.

Scientists have even found an alternative method for the same, in which mother’s egg is fertilized with father’s sperm first and then transferred to donor’s egg. The technique introduced by the team aims at bringing an end to the transmission of genetic disease, which is incurable.

“This has the possibility of stopping the disease and stopping it in the next generations as well”, said Professor Doug Turnbull, from the Newcastle University.