Britain’s Newcastle University says its scientists have received a license to create babies using DNA from three people, the first time such approval has been granted.

The license was granted by the country’s fertility regulator on Thursday, according to the university.

In December, British officials approved the “cautious use” of the techniques, which are intended to prevent women from passing on fatal genetic diseases to their children. The new procedures fix problems linked to mitochondria, the energy-producing structures outside a cell’s nucleus. Faulty mitochondria can result in conditions including muscular dystrophy and major organ failure.

Last year, U.S.-based doctors announced they had created the world’s first baby using such techniques, after traveling to Mexico to perform the methods, which have not been approved in the United States.
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