Chapter 3
Research involving embryos and foetuses
Section 11
Conditions governing research involving embryos
Research on embryos outside a woman’s body may be carried out only by agencies that have been granted the appropriate licence by the National Authority for Medicolegal Affairs. The conditions for the granting of the licence shall be laid down by Decree.
Medical research on embryos is permitted only if no more than 14 days have passed from their formation. The time during which an embryo is kept frozen shall not count for the purposes of calculating this time limit.
Section 12
Consent for research on embryos
Research on embryos outside a woman’s body may not be undertaken without the written consent of the persons who donated the gametes. The donors shall be provided with the information referred to in section 6 (2). Consent may be withdrawn on the same terms as set out in section 6 (3).
Embryos produced from donated gametes may not be used for research once the withdrawal of consent has been received.
Research on an embryo inside a woman’s body may not be undertaken without her written consent.
Section 13
Restrictions on research on embryos
The production of embryos exclusively for the purpose of research shall be forbidden.
Embryos that have been used for research may not be implanted in a human body or be kept alive for longer than 14 days from their formation, not including any time during which they have been kept frozen.
Research may use embryos that have been stored for up to 15 years, after which the embryos must be destroyed.
Penal provisions
Section 25
Unlawful research on embryos and gametes
Any person who undertakes research on embryos without the licence referred to in section 11 or in contravention of the restrictions laid down in sections 11 and 13, or who in contravention of the prohibition in section 15 conducts research on embryos or gametes, shall be fined or imprisoned for a period not exceeding a year for unlawful research on embryos and gametes.
Section 26
Unlawful intervention on the genome
Any person who undertakes research with the aim of :
(1) cloning human beings;
(2) creating a human being by combining embryos;
(3) creating a human being by combining human gametes and genes from animals,
shall be fined or imprisoned for a period not exceeding two years for unlawful intervention on the genome.