IVF sperm 'contamination' concern

A Spanish team mixed mouse sperm with E.coli bacteria to see if accidental genetic modification could take place.

They then injected the sperm into mice eggs and found some resulting embryos did indeed contain an E.coli gene, New Scientist reports.

A UK expert said no such contamination had been known in human IVF, and was unlikely to cause ill health anyway.

The team from INIA, the Spanish agricultural research agency, used a procedure called ICSI, or intracytoplasmic sperm injection, where an individual sperm is injected directly into the egg.

ICSI is used to help men who have low sperm counts or sperm which does not move very well.

It accounts for around half of IVF procedures in many countries, including the UK and US.

But scientists have also been investigating using ICSI to make genetically modified animals, by mixing DNA with sperm before injecting it into the eggs.

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