Ectogenesis

Ectogenesis

Ectogenesis (from the Greek "ecto", "outer," and "genesis") is the creation of mammalian life outside the uterus. Ectogenesis nominally refers to the complete artificial creation of life, as described in Aldous Huxley's 1932 novel "Brave New World". However, the term has been applied to all technological developments that would result in a shortening of the time required for the fetus to attain viability following implantation in the womb.

Ectogenesis involves the application of extracorporeal membrane oxygenation (ECMO) to previable infants whose lungs are incapable of gas exchange. ECMO is a technique used in selected neonatal intensive care units to treat term infants with selected medical problems that result in the infant's inability to survive through gas exchange using the lungs. It is not currently used on preterm infants. Such experimentation on human preterm infants has not been reported. However, experiments on fetal goats have occurred and have resulted in maintenance of life for several weeks outside the uterus in previable goat fetuses. Issues related to nutrition and hormonal stability remain to be addressed.

The application of ECMO to preterm human fetuses has the potential to avoid complications of conventional neonatal intensive care, such as lung damage and stroke. It also has the potential to move the threshold of fetal viability to a much earlier stage of pregnancy. This would have implications for the ongoing controversy regarding human reproductive rights.

ee also

*Artificial uterus
*Ectopic pregnancy
*Endometrium
*IVF
*Placenta
*Uterus
*Amniotic fluid
*Apheresis
*ECMO
*Hemodialysis
*Liver dialysis
*TPN
*Tissue engineering


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  • ectogenesis — [ek΄tō jen′ə sis, ek΄təjen′ə sis] n. pl. ectogeneses [ek΄tōjen′əsēz΄] the growth process of embryonic tissue placed in an artificial environment, as a test tube ectogenetic [ek΄tōjə net′ik] adj …   English World dictionary

  • ectogenesis — ektogenezė statusas T sritis ekologija ir aplinkotyra apibrėžtis Teorija, teigianti, kad gamtos evoliucija vyksta tik dėl tiesioginio organizmų prisitaikymo prie aplinkos. atitikmenys: angl. ectogenesis vok. Ektogenese, f rus. эктогенез, m …   Ekologijos terminų aiškinamasis žodynas

  • ectogenesis — ectogenetic /ek toh jeuh net ik/, adj. /ek toh jen euh sis/, n. Biol. development outside the body, as of an embryo in an artificial environment. [1905 10; < NL; see ECTO , GENESIS] * * * …   Universalium

  • ectogénesis — Ontogénesis producida debido a la adaptación de cada especie a la acción de los factores externos …   Diccionario ecologico

  • ectogenesis — variation in response to outside conditions Causation and Formation …   Phrontistery dictionary

  • ectogenesis — [ˌɛktə(ʊ) dʒɛnɪsɪs] noun (chiefly in science fiction) the development of embryos in artificial conditions outside the womb. Derivatives ectogenetic adjective …   English new terms dictionary

  • ectogenesis — ec·to·gen·e·sis …   English syllables

  • ectogenesis —   n. development outside body.    ♦ ectogenic, ectogenous, a …   Dictionary of difficult words

  • ectogenesis — n. Biol. the production of structures outside the organism. Derivatives: ectogenetic adj. ectogenic adj. ectogenous adj. Etymology: mod.L (as ECTO , GENESIS) …   Useful english dictionary

  • Reproduction and pregnancy in science fiction — Reproduction and pregnancy are common themes in science fiction, as well as utopian and dystopian works. Reproductive themes include, among others, pregnancy, forms of reproduction (sexual reproduction, parthenogenesis, ectogenesis, alien human… …   Wikipedia

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