Christianity - A Journey from Facts to Fiction — Page 6
6 Christianity – A Journey from Facts to Fiction tional ovaries and two infertile testes. Recent studies suggest that such a phenomenon is possible, rarely, among humans also. Parthenogenesis Parthenogenesis is the asexual development of a female ovum into an individual, without the aid of a male agent. It is observed among many lower forms of life such as aphids and also fish. There is also evidence that parthenogenesis can be a successful strategy among lizards living under low and unpredictable rainfall conditions. In laboratory conditions, mice and rabbit embryos have been developed parthenogenetically to a stage equivalent to halfway through pregnancy, but have then been aborted. In a recent study, scientists found that human embryos could be occasionally activated by parthenogenesis using calcium ionophore as a catalyst. Such research raises the prospect that some early human pregnancy losses may have involved the parthenogenetic activation of the embryo. According to the latest experimental research, however, the possibility of virgin birth has been shown to be scientifically feasible. A report in the Nature Genetics of Oct. 1995 discusses the remarkable case of a three year old boy whose body is derived in part from an unfertilised egg. The researchers examined DNA sequences all along the X chromosomes in the boy’s skin and blood and discovered that the X chromosomes in all his cells were identical to each other and derived entirely from his mother. Similarly, both members of each of the 22 other chromosome