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A human embryo frozen for almost nine years has developed into a healthy baby girl. The previous published record was eight years, says Carlos Quintans of the University of Buenos Aires in Argentina, who led the IVF team. Fertilised embryos are known to survive freezing better than eggs alone, and there’s no evidence that freezing has any adverse effects. “Long-term storage may represent an option for couples who wish to postpone childbearing,” the doctors say. In the US, however, there have already been custody battles over frozen embryos.