The creation of babies using sperm and eggs from three people

The creation of babies using sperm and eggs from three people has moved a step closer in the UK.

A public review into the three person IVF technique has been broadly supportive, says the Department of Health. But a number of technical and scientific details need to be finalised before the plans go before Parliament.

The move would be restricted to mitochondrial disease, affecting one in 6,500 UK babies born each year. This may lead to muscle weakness, blindness, and heart failure. Using the parents' sperm and eggs plus an additional egg from a donor woman should prevent such conditions, say scientists at Newcastle University.

Approval details

An expert scientific panel has already suggested there is no evidence the procedure is unsafe but has asked for a number of further investigations to be carried out.

The government expects other details to be finalised in the next few months before the plans are legalised. read more from BBCnewshealth