Britain's fertility regulator has approved the so-called 'three-parent baby' treatment to prevent inherited diseases.
The decision by the Human Fertilisation and Embryology Authority (HFEA) paves the way for the first mitochondrial replacement therapy (MRT) patients to be treated as early as next spring.
It could help prevent a wide range of potentially fatal genetic conditions affecting vital organs, muscles, vision, growth and mental ability.
HFEA board members unanimously voted to allow clinics to apply for permission to help women give birth to babies with three genetic parents.
The IVF children would receive a tiny amount of DNA from an egg donor as well as their mother and father.
Scientists at the University of Newcastle, which has pioneered the therapy, say they already have women lined up to receive it.
The team hopes to treat up to 25 women a year with NHS funding.
Each patient will have to be considered separately before a licence allowing the therapy is issued.
HFEA chairwoman Sally Cheshire said: "This is a historic decision. Patients who might be in line for this treatment will be really pleased with what we've decided today."
The move came after an independent panel of experts cleared remaining safety hurdles to recommend "cautious adoption" of MRT.
Fertility doctors carrying out the treatment will aim to replace abnormal genes in the mitochondria, which hold around 0.1% of a person's DNA but have no influence over individual characteristics such as appearance and personality.
It is quite separate from the DNA in the cell nucleus, which houses the vast majority of an individual's genes.
In theory, mitochondrial replacement can not only prevent a child developing inherited diseases but also protect future generations.
Critics say the technique involved is not fool-proof and small numbers of faulty mitochondria may still be "carried over" into the child.
Last year, the UK became the first country in the world to legalise mitochondrial replacement after MPs and peers voted in favour of allowing it.
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