The British public is being asked for how they feel about the creation of IVF babies with three genetic parents.

What they say could pave the way to a landmark change in the law as early as next year that would affect future generations.

The controversy surrounds ‘uncharted territory’ techniques aimed at preventing a special category of diseases caused by inherited genes.

They involve children being conceived with the help of a third genetic ‘parent’: a woman whose donated egg provides a source of replacement healthy DNA.

A baby created this way would have a full compliment of nuclear DNA from its mother and father, plus a tiny amount of donated mitochondrial DNA.

Mitochondria are rod-like bodies in the cell that act as powerhouses, supplying energy.

They have their own set of genes, separate from those in the cell nucleus, which are only passed on by mothers.

Defects in mitochondrial DNA give rise to a range of serious and potentially life-threatening diseases including a form of muscular dystrophy and conditions leading to the loss of hearing and vision, heart problems and intestinal disorders.

The new mitochondrial replacement treatments would remove the damaged DNA, thereby breaking the generational chain of disease.

But they are banned because any tampering with inherited […]