By: Yuelan Yuan

The transformation of a fertilized human egg to a fully developed body is only partly understood by scientists. Biologists are trying to better understand the process by creating models of human embryos.

To create such models, stem cells are organized into clumps that resemble real embryos. This research has attracted the interest of numerous scientists with the shared hope of better understanding early human development.

Scientists hope that these new studies will lead to the development of treatments for infertility and cancer.

In the past, the only human embryos that could be studied were specimens collected from miscarriages or abortions. Additionally, research on embryos had to be completed within a 14-day limit.

The creation of realistic embryos may help researchers understand the causes of pregnancy failures, certain viral infections, and genetic mutations. Some expressed concern that the creation of these models could complicate existing research. But scientists who are part of the research explain that these embryos could never develop into a human being.

“Our aims are never for the purpose of human reproduction,” said Tianqing Li, a developmental biologist at Kunming University of Science and Technology.

The work is still in its early stages and often fails. Despite this, researchers are hopeful about what this could bring to the medical field in the future.