Human-animal hybrids

The potential payoff for such research is enormous

Japan has just cleared a controversial experiment, which could have major consequences for the future of genetics research. Hiromitsu Nakauchi of the University of Tokyo and Stanford University will be allowed to insert human stem cells into a mouse embryo and allow the resulting hybrid embryo to develop till term. While such experiments have been conducted before, there is normally a time limit of 14 days before the embryo is destroyed. Indeed, many nations have a blanket ban on such experiments.

It is hoped that this experiment will result in insights that allow for entirely new medical transplant techniques. Variations on