News,

A close collaborator of the embattled cloning pioneer Hwang Woo Suk has alleged that Professor Hwang fabricated substantial parts of his research. Dr Sung Roh told a Korean television station: "Professor Hwang admitted to fabrication. Hwang said there were no cloned embryonic stem cells at all and he did not know that." Dr Sung and Professor Hwang have agreed to retract the paper they published in the journal Science. [The Times of London, 16 December]

More women in the UK are having babies in their thirties than in their twenties, according to the Office for National Statistics. The average age to give birth is 29.6 years of age with women aged 30 to 34 having the highest birth rate. Some fertility experts are expressing concerns about the health risks associated with postponing parenthood. [The Independent, 16 December]

A Birmingham GP has been charged with sending a woman to Spain for an illegal abortion, BBC reports. Dr Saroj Adlakha is alleged to have arranged for Shilpa Abrol, then said to be 31 weeks pregnant, to have the abortion two years ago. [BBC, 15 December]

Pro-life groups have called for a Planned Parenthood abortion facility in California to be investigated over the case of an 11-year-old rape victim that was publicised on their website. A story on the site read: "I was raped at 11, by my 17 year old boyfriend. I chose not to tell my parents because I didn't think their involvement would help, that was the right choice for me. Planned Parethood [sic] helped me deal with the aftermath of the rape allowing me to deal and cope as best as I could in my own way." The story has since been removed from the website and a representative of Planned Parenthood Golden Gate refused to tell LifeNews.com whether the authorities were informed about the rape. [Lifenews.com, 15 December]

Two studies published in the journal Fertility and Sterility have found that implanting one embryo during IVF treatment is as likely to result in a successful pregnancy as implanting two embryos. Multiple births after IVF treatment are common with many clinics implanting several embryos into the womb at once in the hope of improving the chances of success. [Reuters, 16 December]

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