Sperm bank checks donors' minds

A sperm bank that claims to be the nation's first to use genetic screening for potential hereditary risks and conduct psychological and mental evaluations of donors started trial operations in Shanghai on Wednesday.

Located at the Obstetrics and Gynecology Hospital of Fudan University in Shanghai, the sperm bank - the second in the municipality after one established at Renji Hospital in 2003 - said it will screen for mutated genes that might result in severe consequences, such as miscarriages and birth defects.

Most sperm banks in the country do genetic analysis based on chromosome screening.