Making human-animal embryos for scientific experiments should be allowed because of the benefits to science and medicine. At least that is what British experts feel. Such embryos should never, however, be implanted into either a woman or an animal, says the Academy of Medical Sciences.

The combinations would include animal eggs and the nucleus, containing the genetic material, of a human being, or human embryos that carry the genetic material of an animal, the independent advisory body said.

A cloning technique called somatic cell nuclear transfer, or SCNT for short, involves removing the nucleus from an egg cell and replacing it with the nucleus of a cell from the animal to be cloned—perhaps a skin cell, for instance. Scientists have tried this using, for example, an egg cell from a cow and a human nucleus.

There are no laws against it in either Britain or the United states and the independent Academy said it should remain legal.

“Provided good laboratory practice is rigorously followed, research involving cytoplasmic hybrids or other inter-species embryos offers no significant safety risks over and above regular cell culture research,” said Martin Bobrow of Britain’s Wellcome Trust, who chaired the panel making the recommendations.

“UK legislation permits research on human embryos under license from the HFEA (Human Fertilisation and Embryology Authority) up to 14 days in the laboratory,” Bobrow added in a statement. “Re-implanting human embryos into a woman or animal is not permitted. There are no substantive ethical or moral reasons not to proceed with research on human embryos containing animal material under the same framework of regulatory control,” he said.

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