| 3rd century AD |
Records show that Jewish thinkers discussing possibility
of accidental or unintentional human insemination by artificial
means. |
| 14th century AD |
Accounts of Arab peoples using artificial insemination on horses. |
| 1777 |
Italian priest began experiments with artificial insemination
of reptiles. |
| 1785 |
First attempts at human artificial insemination by John Hunter
- a baby is born the same year. |
| 1890 |
Robert Dickinson begins experimenting with donor sperm, although
his work is carried out in secret because of the condemnation
of the Church. |
| 1945 |
Early reports of donor insemination published in the British
Medical Journal (BMJ). |
| 1955 |
Four successful pregnancies using previously frozen sperm. |
| 1960's |
Big increase in knowledge of ovarian stimulants, how eggs mature,
ovulation, fertilisation and the growth of the embryo in vitro,
safer and better laparoscopy. |
| 1969 |
Human fertilisation in vitro is achieved for the first time. |
| 1973 |
First IVF pregnancy in the world was reported by team in Melbourne,
Australia, and resulted in early embryo death. |
| 1977 |
First IVF pregnancy - but it is ectopic. |
| 1978 |
First IVF birth in the world, resulting from Bob Edwards
and Patrick Steptoe's pioneering work in the UK. Birth of Louise
Brown, the first 'test tube' baby born as a result of IVF. |
| 1979 |
First two sustained IVF pregnancies reported by Melbourne team
in Australia. |
| 1980 |
Two Australian teams succeed in IVF deliveries after drug-induced
superovulation in the mother. |
| 1983 |
Freezing of human embryos by Alan Trounson and Linda Mohr,Infertility
Medical Center (IMC), resulted in world's first frozen embryo
baby. |
| 1984 |
World's First Donor Egg Baby. IMC team achieved the world's
first birth in a woman without ovaries, using donor eggs, the
creation of an artificial menstrual cycle, and a special hormone
schedule for the first 10 weeks of pregnancy.
Women who had no eggs or unsuitable eggs causing the risk of chromosomal
or genetic disease were also treated. |
| 1985 |
First IVF twins born from frozen embryos born in Australia.
|
| 1986 |
The world's first pregnancy and birth from the sperm retrieval
operation performed on a patient whose vasectomy reversal had
failed.
IMC helped establish IVF Australia's first IVF clinic in America.
|
| 1988/89 |
Gamete IntraFallopian Transfer (GIFT) introduced and the first successful pregnancies achieved. |
| 1990 |
Human Fertility and Embryology Act in the UK and the setting
up of the Human Fertility and Embryology Authority. |
| 1992 |
Rosanna della Corte gives birth to a son, Riccardo, at the age
of 62 after IVF treatment by Severino Antinori.
First pregnancy as a result of IntraCytoplasmic Sperm Injection (ICSI). |
| 1997 |
The birth of Dolly the sheep, the first cloned mammal |
| 2000 |
The culture of embryonic stem cells, some from 'spare' embryos
donated by couples who have had successful IVF treatment, opens
the way to 'made-to-order' tissue for transplant surgery. |
| 2001 |
Teams in the US and Italy announce that they are working on
producing the first human clone. |
| 2002 |
Severino Antinori, best known for his work in enabling post-menopausal
women to have babies, claims that three human cloned pregnancies
are taking place, two in Russia and one in 'an Islamic country'. |
(Sources: timelinescience.org; Wood, Carl; IVF, In Vitro Fertalisation;
Hill of Content; Melb.)
