From: mk_thisisit
Professor Magdalena Żernicka-Goetz, a distinguished Polish scientist and the first Polish woman to hold a professorship at the University of Cambridge, has pioneered research into human development. Her laboratory was the first to study human embryos up to day 14 of their development, opening a new chapter in the field [00:00:00]. Her work in embryology has been featured on the covers of leading scientific journals such as Cell, Nature, and Science [00:01:15]. Science magazine named her discovery of a human embryo development phase the scientific breakthrough of 2016 [00:01:30].
Żernicka-Goetz describes her lifelong fascination with “the beginning of the life process, the beginning of our existence” [00:00:15]. She considers the hidden, silent stage of development within the mother’s body, filled with dramatic turns and miraculous transformations, to be “the deepest mystery of our existence” [00:00:36].
Groundbreaking Research: Extending Human Embryo Development In Vitro
Professor Żernicka-Goetz’s laboratory achieved a significant milestone by being the first to conduct research on human embryos up to 14 days of development, a method they started working on nearly 15 years ago [00:02:42], [00:02:51]. This period was previously inaccessible to scientists, often referred to as the “black box of embryonic development” [00:03:10].
For many years, it was only possible to examine embryos during the first five days of life [00:03:22]. Further development required implantation in the uterus, which could not be replicated in a laboratory [00:03:28]. The method developed by her laboratory allowed embryos to develop for an additional seven days during a critical period when the highest number of miscarriages naturally occur [00:03:36], [00:03:44].
This achievement was groundbreaking because it enabled scientists to understand the crucial factors and cellular interactions vital for embryo development [00:03:51]. These mechanisms, previously speculative, are fundamentally important for a proper pregnancy [00:04:10].
Human Embryo Models from Stem Cells
Building on these discoveries, Żernicka-Goetz’s team created the first human embryo models based on stem cells [00:04:22].
What are Embryo Models?
These models are “living structures” [00:04:48]>. While not true embryos, they are embryo-like structures created from living stem cells that mimic aspects of early human development [00:04:54], [00:28:43]. They are not “exact copies,” but allow for the reproduction of key processes [00:05:07]. These models help study how cells interact, communicate, and influence each other within the developing structure [00:05:18].
How Models are Created
The creation of these models is possible due to the “almost unlimited development potential” of stem cells [00:08:31]. Embryonic stem cells were first isolated in 1981, a discovery that later won a Nobel Prize [00:07:01]. Professor Żernicka-Goetz began her scientific career in the laboratory of Nobel laureate Martin Evans, where she learned about embryonic stem cells [00:07:09].
Modern techniques allow for the isolation of extraembryonic cells, which form structures like the placenta, essential for embryo development [00:07:29]. The embryo models are not made from a single type of stem cell; instead, they combine embryonic stem cells with two types of extraembryonic cells [00:07:47]. Under specific conditions, these cells self-organize into embryo-like structures that can develop for several days [00:08:00]. This discovery was published in Science in 2017 [00:09:19].
Distinction from Natural Embryos and Limitations
Professor Żernicka-Goetz emphasizes that these models “cannot develop into a complete human organism” [00:09:45]. For further development, a natural embryo needs to implant in the mother’s body [00:10:00]. These models are incapable of implantation and are intended solely for testing under laboratory conditions [00:10:13]. Their purpose is to enable developmental research, not to recreate a complete organism [00:10:52].
The term “synthetic embryos” is sometimes used colloquially, but Professor Żernicka-Goetz prefers to call them “embryo models” because they are the result of a synthesis process of living cells, not artificial life [00:28:03], [00:28:41]. She clarifies that no scientific publications confirm any group exceeding the 14-day limit for human embryo models [00:30:02], [00:30:44].
Motivation and Significance of the Research
Understanding Life’s Mysteries
Professor Żernicka-Goetz’s research is driven by a deep curiosity about “how we become human” [00:00:19] and “what the dance called life is” [00:01:24]. She is particularly fascinated by the journey before birth, describing it as “the deepest mystery of our existence” [00:16:20], [00:16:34]. Every cellular decision in the first few weeks of development can have lifelong implications [00:16:50]. Her work explores how cells communicate and make key decisions that determine our lives [00:17:26].
Addressing Pregnancy Failures
A significant motivation for this research is the high rate of early pregnancy failures [00:17:49]. Approximately 70% of pregnancies do not result in the birth of a healthy baby; 30% of embryos die in the first week, and another 30% in the second week [00:18:03]. It’s estimated that up to 60% of all pregnancies end within the first two weeks, often before a woman even realizes she is pregnant [00:18:25]. Understanding these early stages is crucial to preventing these losses and supporting life from its first moments [00:17:54]. Many failures stem from chromosomal changes or other aberrations in the embryo’s cells [00:19:16].
Personal Inspiration
Professor Żernicka-Goetz’s personal experience greatly influenced her decision to research human embryos. During her second pregnancy, a prenatal test showed that 25% of her son’s cells had an abnormal set of chromosomes [00:19:42], [00:19:50]. It was later discovered that these abnormalities were limited to the placenta, a structure that supports the baby but doesn’t directly form it, yet originates from the same fertilized egg [00:21:26], [00:21:39]. This experience made her realize the importance of understanding why so many pregnancies fail and motivated her to dedicate her work to protecting life when it is most fragile [00:20:24], [00:20:55].
Her research on mouse embryos, inspired by her pregnancy, revealed that embryos can eliminate chromosomally abnormal cells, particularly from the part that forms the baby’s body [00:22:31]. Abnormal cells may be tolerated in the placenta [00:22:57]. This demonstrates the “extraordinary strength and plasticity of embryos” and their ability to “save themselves” when something goes wrong [00:23:01], [00:44:53]. She believes this knowledge could lead to new methods for treating infertility [00:36:59].
Another key discovery by her lab, published recently, is that most of the human body originates from just one of the two cells at the two-cell stage of development [00:49:07]. This highlights an early, subtle asymmetry in development [00:49:45].
Ethical Landscape and Public Perception
The 14-Day Rule
The 14-day rule, established many years ago, serves as an ethical and experimental boundary for human embryo research [00:11:09], [00:12:29]. This day is significant because it marks the beginning of gastrulation, a “magical moment” when the embryo starts forming new tissues, and the body’s axis and future structures begin to arrange themselves [00:14:35]. Adherence to such boundaries is crucial for conducting research with respect for life and maintaining public trust [00:46:22].
Misunderstandings and Controversies
Professor Żernicka-Goetz notes that there is significant misunderstanding surrounding embryo research [00:41:04]. People often confuse laboratory embryos with those developing in a woman’s body, or imagine scientists creating humans in test tubes [00:41:43], [00:45:54]. In reality, the research aims to understand basic biological mechanisms to protect life and prevent early pregnancy failures, similar to how heart research aims to prevent heart attacks [00:41:32], [00:41:58]. The difficulty in explaining complex science simply contributes to these misunderstandings [00:42:52].
Forbidden Manipulations
While ethical limits are important, Professor Żernicka-Goetz states that manipulation of human embryos for purposes “inconsistent with knowledge, ethics and the good of man” should be strictly prohibited [00:46:33]. This includes attempts to create hybrid organisms with the intention of developing them outside the laboratory [00:46:40]. The line between research and human engineering must be clearly drawn and guarded [00:46:48].
Tools and Collaborations
Role of Animal Models
The laboratory studies natural mouse embryos as an excellent model for understanding human development, as their initial stages are very similar [00:05:45]. However, beyond the first week, mouse and human embryo development diverge significantly, necessitating research on human cells and cells from other primates for a more complete understanding [00:31:03]. Research using organoid structures is also undertaken [00:06:48].
Application of Artificial Intelligence
Artificial intelligence plays a “supporting but very useful role” in the research [00:32:00]. AI is used to determine which embryos develop most normally and have the greatest developmental potential, for example, by analyzing recordings of mouse embryo development to predict successful outcomes [00:32:05].
The Journey of a Scientist: Professor Żernicka-Goetz’s Path
Born in communist Poland, Żernicka-Goetz experienced political changes that opened borders during her studies [00:50:58]. She completed her PhD at the University of Warsaw under pioneering mammalian embryologist Andrzej Tarkowski [00:51:18]. A scholarship allowed her to study at Oxford, opening new horizons, and she was later invited to join Nobel laureate Martin Evans’ lab in Cambridge [00:51:33]. Although she initially planned to return to Poland, she stayed in Cambridge to establish and lead her own laboratory until recently moving to Caltech in California [00:52:24].
Defining Life and Humanity
Professor Żernicka-Goetz views embryos as “life dynamic, evolving, on its own unique journey” [00:25:26]. Beyond biological life, she ponders “what makes us human” and the questions of soul and consciousness [00:25:44]. Influenced by conversations with her neurophysiologist father, she believes the “soul can emerge when the nervous system begins to form,” enabling feeling, reaction, communication, and existence [00:26:07]. The embryos her team studies are at an earlier stage, without a nervous system, preparing the ground for its later formation [00:26:20], [00:27:17]. She posits that becoming “someone, and not just something,” occurs when the opportunity to respond appears, which requires the nervous system [00:26:35].
Her book, titled “The Dance of Life: How Do We Become Human?”, reflects her belief that human development is a sequence of step-by-step processes, building foundations and then developing the brain [00:26:57]. Her work aims to explore “how it’s even possible that something as precise as a human can come from such a small number of cells” [00:40:18], finding “new worlds within ourselves” [00:40:46].