This volume of essays, together with its companion Creating the Child: The Ethics, Law and Practice of Assisted Procreation (Martinus Nijhoff, The Hague, 1996, ISBN 90-411-0207-8) is the result of a concerted action in the BIOMED programme of the European Commission, which was coordinated by the Editor. Clinicians, lawyers and philosophers explore the theoretical and practical problems presented by the new technologies in assisted human reproduction in Eastern, Central and Western Europe. The central question of the status of the human embryo is examined in the light of recent biological discoveries and cultural and legal dissonance within and between the various countries in Europe.

Translated by: M. Zehery