Genetic “optimization” of embryos launched in the U.S.
Parents undergoing IVF are now being offered the option to select embryos based on preferred traits such as gender, height, eye and hair color. The remaining embryos will be discarded.
American company Nucleus Genomics has unveiled its new software, Nucleus Embryo – the world’s first system for the genetic “optimization” of embryos. The platform allows parents to analyze the genetic profiles of up to 20 embryos created through in vitro fertilization (IVF).
The system enables parents to evaluate and compare embryos across more than 900 hereditary diseases and 40 additional parameters, including risks for cancer, chronic illnesses, physical appearance, cognitive abilities, mental health, and other traits.
In addition, Nucleus offers parents the option to optimize embryos based on intelligence.
The platform analyzes over 1,000 traits, allowing users to choose embryos with desired cognitive abilities, height, eye and hair color, among other features. Company representatives also claim the technology can predict a future person’s lifespan.
The launch of this service comes amid historically low birth rates in the U.S. and a growing reliance on IVF. Over the past 15 years, U.S. birth rates have dropped by 20%, reaching their lowest point since the 1970s in 2023. Currently, one in every 50 children in the U.S. is born through assisted reproductive technologies.
Earlier, the UOJ reported that the world’s first computer based on human neurons had gone on sale.
