It may be one thing for someone to choose to risk these complications in order to give someone a kidney because they are a relative or simply out of the pure goodness of their hearts. But it is quite another to seduce sellers into such a market--who would mostly be the poor or the desperate--and persuade them into risking life and health for money, or a mortgage down payment, or health insurance--some of Satel's suggested enticements. There is a word for that, and I am afraid it is exploitation.

Use Aborted Children to Make up Shortfall of Transplant Organs: Oxford Stem Cell Expert

An Oxford University stem cell expert has urged the use of aborted children in organ transplants as a solution to the shortage of available organs. Sir Richard Gardner has called for a feasibility study on the possibility of obtaining organs from the bodies of aborted babies.

He said, "It is probably a more realistic technique in dealing with the shortage of kidney donors than others."

The Daily Mail reports that pro-life and Christian groups have called the proposal "morally abhorrent," and said it will result in abortions being timed to suit transplant patients.

Dr Peter Saunders, of the Christian Medical Fellowship, said the transplants would be immoral as every human being, even the unborn, deserved "protection, respect, wonder and empathy."

Fears that this suggestion will create a trade in aborted children have their justification in the work of US pro-life groups who have in the past uncovered the relationship between the abortion industry and the trade in aborted body parts for medical research and the creation of vaccines. (See: http://www.lifesitenews.com/ldn/2007/nov/07113008.html) LifeSite

Italian Doctor Says He Has Cloned 3 Babies

A controversial Italian doctor known for his work allowing post-menopausal women to have children has claimed in an interview to have cloned three babies who are now living in eastern Europe.

"I helped give birth to three children with the human cloning technique," Severino Antinori, a prominent gynaecologist, told Oggi weekly in an interview to appear Wednesday.

"It involved two boys and a girl who are nine years old today. They were born healthy and they are in excellent health now."

He did not provide proof of his claims, but said cells from the three fathers, who were sterile, allowed the cloning to be carried out.

The women's egg cells were impregnated in a laboratory through a method called "nuclear transfer," he said. read more Breitbart

US clinic offers ‘designer babies’

Choose the hair and eye color…

A US clinic has sparked controversy by offering would-be parents the chance to select traits like the eye and hair colour of their offspring.

The LA Fertility Institutes run by Dr Jeff Steinberg, a pioneer of IVF in the 1970s, expects a trait-selected baby to be born next year.

His clinic also offers sex selection.

UK fertility experts are angered that the service will distract attention from how the same technology can protect against inherited disease.

The science is based on a lab technique called preimplantation genetic diagnosis, or PGD.

This involves testing a cell taken from a very early embryo before it is put into the mother's womb.

Doctors then select an embryo free from rogue genes - or in this case an embryo with the desired physical traits such as blonde hair and blue eyes - to continue the pregnancy, and discard any others. read more BBC

Bioethicist: Lots of 'hype' in embryonic stem cell research

The demand for more human embryos and money to underwrite research on them is spreading the false impression the United States is falling behind in stem cell research, a leading pro-life bioethicist says.

"In fact, the U.S. leads the world, not just on embryonic stem cell but on all stem cell studies," said David Prentice, senior fellow for life sciences at the Family Research Council (FRC) and one of the United States' experts in the fields of cloning, stem cell research and bioethics.

Prentice tried to clear up the misinformation on cloning, embryonic stem cell and adult stem cell research at a FRC policy lecture titled "The Audacity of Hype: Embryonic Stem Cells Wasting Taxpayer Lives and Wasting Taxpayer Dollars."

"Unfortunately, what you tend to get, certainly in the mass media, is the hype. And you don't tend to get the actual facts [of stem cell research]," Prentice said.

President Obama has said he plans to overturn the Bush administration's policy, which prohibits federal funding for stem cell research that results in the destruction of human embryos. The extraction of stem cells from an embryo in such research destroys the days-old human being.

The anticipated order from Obama would permit experimentation using human embryos now in storage. The U.S. has an estimated 400,000 frozen embryos, but only 2.8 percent are available for research, according to a 2003 report by RAND Corp., a research group dedicated to providing experimental data and analysis. read more bpnews

Fetal Stem Cell Therapy Produces Tumors in Boys Brain, Spine

As some in South Dakota move to repeal the state’s ban on embryonic stem cell research (SB 195), Breitbart.com reports an experimental fetal stem cell therapy used on an Israeli boy who had a rare, fatal genetic disease  called ataxia telangiectasia, or A-T.

The case was published in the journal PLoS Medicine. 

Unfortunately the fetal stem cell therapy had the same effect commonly seen in embryonic stem cell research: tumors.

Israeli doctors pieced together the child’s history: When he was 9, the family traveled to Russia, to a Moscow clinic that provided injections of neural stem cells from fetuses—immature cells destined to grow into a main type of brain cells. The cells were injected into his brain and spinal cord twice more, at ages 10 and 12.

read more DakotaVoice

Spinal Cord Injury Patient Walks- Dallas Newspaper Rains on Parade

From Don Margolis

Read this carefully, and I will give you a lesson on how the mainstream media plays us for fools. Yesterday, The Star Telegram in Dallas, Texas ran an article on Jessica Grimm, 27, a young woman who suffered a spinal cord injury at the age of 14 and hasn’t walked since.

The title of the article is “Lured by Promise of Stem Cells, Dallas-Ft. Worth residents head abroad for medical treatment”– Even in the title- people are being “lured” into a death trap. The article starts with their negative slant.

Aside from the title, the article starts off innocently enough:

A quadriplegic since she was 14, Jessica Grimm learned long ago how to work around her body’s limitations.

She lives alone, uses a computer, has a job, even drives a car. But the Arlington student must rely on a coterie of assistants to help her dress, cook and get through each day.

Now 27, Jessica Grimm is eager for more independence. So much so that she traveled to Costa Rica last month for a controversial stem cell treatment that’s unavailable in this country. (Why controversial?  It is an Adult Stem Cell treatment- Don)

Grimm and her family raised about $20,000 to cover her trip to the Institute for Cellular Medicine, where doctors injected her with adult stem cells.

“I was actually able to take a few steps on my own before I left, which I’ve never done,” she said. “My mom was crying. Then my physical therapist started crying.”

From that point on the article  goes downhill, here’s more:

The feat thrilled Grimm, who previously had some mobility in her legs and hand. But she still has no idea whether the treatment actually succeeded.

Doctors told her it could take months to see results. And it’s possible that the real credit for her footsteps should go not to the cell injections, but to the strenuous physical therapy she did in Costa Rica.

So she couldn’t walk for 13 years and then all of a sudden after one month of “strenuous physical therapy” AND ADULT STEM CELLS in Costa Rica, she can take some steps on her own and this newspaper suggests it has nothing to do with the cell injections (the stem cells)??  RIDICULOUS!!!

The article deteriorates from a nice story into a opinion piece on “stem cell tourism” using negative headings like “No Promises Made” and “Driven by Desperation” to play on the fear of us Americans (and the rest of the world) that any medical treatment outside of the United States doesn’t work.

I am trying to let the United States and the rest of the world know that there is help outside of the US, and it is in the form of stem cell therapy using Adult Stem Cells.   My dream is to see it available everywhere (especially the United States) because it can help millions of people right now- and we do nothing.  Therefore,  people like Jessica have to be pioneers and go outside the United States to get a stem cell treatment that is very safe with little to zero side effects.

Update: Richard Humphries, a Multiple Sclerosis patient who went to Costa Rica with Preston Walker for the “controversial stem cell treatment unavailable in this country”  responds to this negative article on his blog.  This comes from the horse’s mouth so to speak- Richard is speaking from personal  experience- go read it.

Scientists Still Can't Solve Cancer Issues With Embryonic Stem Cell Research

In just a matter of weeks, Barack Obama may force Americans to spend millions for unproven embryonic stem cell research. Yet, scientists admit they are having significant problems overcoming one of the major hurdles that may prevent the cells from every helping human patients.

While adult stem cells have helped patients with a wide range of dozens of diseases and conditions, embryonic stem cells have yet to help one patient and have had problems in animals.

One major problem is that they tend to form cancerous cells or tumors after they are injected -- and scientists have yet to stop that from happening.

A new article in Nature Reports Stem Cells highlights the work of Mickie Bhatia and colleagues at McMaster University that shows that the embryonic stem cells that look the best may perform the worst. read more LifeNews

Human-Chimp Hybrid Cloning Proponents at it Again, Devalue Human Life

Anti-human exceptionalism views are all the rage among the intelligentsia of a certain philosophical persuasion, which is part of what is leading us toward a culture of death.

I am not sure why some materialists are so fervently anti human exceptionalism. I suspect they believe that by humbling us into believing our lives are no more important than that of animals, it would undermine Judeo/Christian moral philosophy in general and theism in particular. Some too, I think, wish to have us sacrifice ourselves to "save the planet," in pursuit of the neo- nature worship that seems to be growing.

This desire leads some materialists to yearn for scientists to find (or create) a human/chimpanzee hybrid that could interbreed with both species, and thereby "break the species" barrier. James Hughes yearned for such a hybrid to be manufactured through genetic engineering in Citizen Cyborg, because he wrote, it would prove humans are not special and undermine what he calls "human racism." WesleyJSmith, LifeNews

Embryonic Stem Cell Research Advocates Backpeddle on Obama-Funded Cures -

saying not to expect cures within the first year -- or even the first Obama term

Barack Obama hasn't yet taken up residence in the White House or overturned the limits President Bush put in place prohibiting taxpayer funding of new embryonic stem cell research that destroys lives. Now, already, scientists are backing down on the promises of cures resulting from Obama's promised funding.

Terry Devitt, the director of research communications for the University of Wisconsin, admits that, “There’s still a lot of basic science to be done" before embryonic stem cell research may bear fruit -- if it ever does.

"The [Bush] policy has set research back five to six to seven years in this country,” Devitt ," Devitt claimed

Wesley J. Smith, a bioethics attorney, says attacking the Bush administration's policy for either a lack of funding or success doesn't square with the facts.

"Oh please. First, thanks to Bush probably more money was thrown at ESCR than ever would have otherwise been the case," Smith explained.

That's because state governments like those in California, Illinois and elsewhere may not have funded embryonic stem cell research as much had the federal government spent taxpayer funds on it.

"Second, according to the Rockefeller Institute, the field has received a whopping $2 billion in research funds in the USA alone," Smith explained -- saying that embryonic stem cells have received significant funding. LifeNews

THE FROZEN ONES - The morally deserted world of spare embryos

...In the United States alone, approximately 500,000 embryos now lie suspended in this frozen world. Thousands more accumulate every year. They go there because we make more embryos than are necessary for one child, and we set some aside in case we need them for a second child. They're our backup kids. In our heads, they aren't real yet. But in the freezer, they are.

President Bush, God bless him, wants to find homes for them. He wants the parents who made them to let others gestate, deliver, and raise them. It's a beautiful thought. But a survey published last week in Fertility and Sterility says it's not going to happen. The survey sampled more than 1,000 people who had embryos on ice. Only 7 percent said they were very likely to give their embryos to other parents. Twice as many were willing to consider donating embryos for research as for reproduction. read more Slate

Women Sacrifice Much As Egg Donors

Women who think they are helping medical science may be surprised to find out that all they contributed to was a vast destruction of potential human life.

With increased interest in embryonic stem cell research and human cloning comes an ever increasing demand for the one body part that makes it all work - an egg.

To make a successful embryo or to attempt cloning, dozens of eggs are needed.

Increasingly women are being tempted to part with the most precious part of their fertility.

Some hope to create life, others merely opt for the quick buck, using the money from the sale of eggs to pay down a loan or buy a plane ticket to Paris.

It has been considered unethical and therefore illegal in most countries to sell body parts for scientific research, yet the one exception is ironically the most priceless: the egg that provides the key to human life.

Women, mostly college-aged, who are lured with promises of easy money on college campuses, agree to allow their eggs to be harvested, unaware of the long-term physical or spiritual problems lurking behind the lucrative offers. read more Bulletin

Stem-Cells to Treat Arthritis in Your Pet

While Californians are still waiting for some sort of return on the $3 billion plus they shelled out for immoral and unproven Embryonic Stem-Cells, adult stem-cells are treating people (and now animals!) left and right.

from donmargolis.com

In this blog, we have well documented the effects that Adult Stem Cells (or Repair Stem Cells as I call them) have on dogs.  We have seen plenty of stories of stem cell therapy helping dogs.  Now we have yet another dog helped by using his own Repair Stem Cells.

KC, a golden retriever was getting up in age- 11 years old.  He was beginning to slow down.  In his owner, Krista Moyes words, “He was having a hard time getting up in the morning and really wasn’t walking at all on his back leg.”

Krista took KC to the vet who said surgery wasn’t an option, it was typical for a dog KC’s age to start slowing down with arthritis and decreased range of motion in the legs- for KC it was the right leg.

The Vet, Dr. Lillian Rizzo suggested a new stem cell procedure.  This stem cell therapy was developed by Vet-Stem, a stem cell company for horses, dogs, and cats that uses the animal’s own stem cells.

Dr. Rizzo then removed some fat tissue from KC, and sent it off to Vet-Stem where they isolate stem cells from the fat tissue and then send it back already packed in syringes and ready to go.

Then Dr. Rizzo simply injected the stem cells into the site of the injury and let the Repair Stem Cells do what they do best– REPAIR

 

Brave New Parenting: Using Genetics to Determine Which Sport Our Child Should Play

It used to be that the parental ideal was to expose one's children to many and varied activities so that they could discover for themselves the avocations and activities that most suited them. But apparently that's too messy and time consuming for some. A company is now offering to test children's genes to determine which sport they will be best at so that parents can cut through the dross and put them directly in that activity. From the story:

When Donna Campiglia learned recently that a genetic test might be able to determine which sports suit the talents of her 2 ½-year-old son, Noah, she instantly said, Where can I get it and how much does it cost? read more

"I could see how some people might think the test would pigeonhole your child into doing fewer sports or being exposed to fewer things, but I still think it's good to match them with the right activity," Campiglia, 36, said as she watched a toddler class at Boulder Indoor Soccer in which Noah struggled to take direction from the coach between juice and potty breaks. "I think it would prevent a lot of parental frustration," she said.

Yes, well we wouldn't want you to be frustrated. But maybe you should love your kid enough to give him the room to take some wrong turns, have some rough patches, and fall on his butt a few times until he finds his own way. After all, that's part of what childhood is for. Sure it hurts, but the tough times strengthen us and help us not only become individuals. but mature adults. read more SecondhandSmoke

Researchers complain about limits on buying eggs

In California, the average rate is $3,000 to $5,000 plus expenses, although more is sometimes paid to women with certain physical attributes or high intelligence

State laws that are aimed at putting California at the global forefront of stem cell science are stymieing a promising avenue of research by creating a shortage of human eggs.

The state's $3 billion taxpayer initiative to fund stem cell research prohibits paying women to be egg donors. But to work on therapeutic cloning, an area of research that might make patient-specific therapies possible, scientists need human eggs.

“This is what I call the great stem cell debacle, and it's ridiculous,” said Dr. Samuel Wood, who founded Stemagen, a San Diego biotechnology company that is trying to create human embryonic stem cells through therapeutic cloning. read more sdtrib

Adult Stem Cell Miracle: Mother-of-two becomes first transplant patient to receive an organ grown to order in a laboratory

Doctors overcame the problem of rejection by taking her own stem cells to grow the replacement organ

A 30-year-old Spanish woman has made medical history by becoming the first patient to receive a whole organ transplant grown using her own cells.

Experts said the development opened a new era in surgery in which the repair of worn-out body parts would be carried out with personally customised replacements.

Claudia Castillo, who lives in Barcelona, underwent the operation to replace her windpipe after tuberculosis had left her with a collapsed lung and unable to breathe.

The bioengineered organ was transplanted into her chest last June at the Hospital Clinic in Barcelona.

Four months later she was able to climb two flights of stairs, go dancing and look after her children – activities that had been impossible before the surgery. Ms Castillo has also crossed a second medical frontier by becoming the first person to receive a whole organ transplant without the need for powerful immunosuppressant drugs. read more Ind

Cloning the Dead - Science Fiction Becomes Reality

A research team at the Centre for Developmental Biology in Kobe, Japan have successfully cloned a mouse that was dead and frozen for 16 years.  This is the first time that a frozen animal has been successfully cloned and, until now, it was assumed that freezing would damage a cell’s DNA enough to make it useless. read more mdinfonews

Michigan proposal to expand stem cell research passes

A proposal to loosen restrictions on embryonic stem cell research in Michigan has passed according to analysis of key precinct results and exit poll data.

Proposal 2 would amend the state constitution to allow Michigan researchers to use embryos leftover from fertility treatments to create embryonic stem cell lines for disease research. Proponents, led by the bipartisan group Cure Michigan, contend the embryos would likely be thrown away otherwise, and because embryonic stem cells have the capacity to form nearly every cell in the human body, they have untold potential for curing disease. read more freep

Genetic Testing in a Petri Dish Could Eliminate 'Imperfect' Humans--Before Implanting in Mom

Genetic testing is changing modern medicine to detect, treat, and even prevent diseases, but one procedure allows scientists to test embryos developed in the laboratory so that only "healthy" embryos are implanted into the womb, experts said at the National Press Club on Tuesday.

"Pre-implantation" screening is done by egg fertilization in a Petri dish and then the embryos are screened so that those with genetic disorders can be eliminated, said panelist Sherri Bale, a medical geneticist and co-founder of GeneDx, a company that offers molecular diagnoses of hereditary disorders.read more CNSNews

Tissue Can Be Taken from Mentally Incapacitated to Make Clones without Consent under British Bill

An amendment to the Human Fertilisation and Embryology bill, put forward by the UK government, would allow tissue taken from people who lack the “mental capacity” to give consent to be used to create clones.

The warnings of pro-life campaigners were vindicated when it was revealed in the Daily Telegraph this weekend that under the amendment tissue for cloning may be removed from children, those in comas, or those with dementia who are incapable of understanding what is being proposed. The amendment also allows tissue previously donated for unrelated reasons by donors who can no longer be traced to be used to create clones.

According to the Telegraph the controversial amendment was agreed after the main parliamentary debates by an all-party committee of only 17 MPs. read more LifeSite

Oregon Court Orders Frozen Embryos Destroyed, Considered "Property Rights" Issue

The Oregon Court of Appeals on Wednesday denied a father's appeal to keep his six frozen embryos alive, and ordered that the embryos be destroyed by thawing, as ordered by his ex-wife.  The court also ruled that the embryos' fate fell under the issue of "property rights."

The court unanimously agreed that the father, orthodontist Dr. Darrell Angle, had no right to "impose a genetic parental relationship" on his ex-wife, pediatrician Dr. Laura Dahl, who did not wish to be considered the mother of the preborn children in the event that they were carried to term.  Angle, on the other hand, insisted that the embryos were alive and deserved to be protected from destruction. 

In 2000, Drs. Angle and Dahl had married and given birth to a son, and in 2004 decided to conceive again via in-vitro fertilization (IVF) treatment at the Oregon Health & Science University (OHSU).  The treatment failed, and six embryos were frozen for indefinite preservation.  The agreement signed by both parties named Dahl as the default decision-maker concerning the fate of the embryos, should the couple separate. read more LifeSite

Stem-cell science an election issue in 3 states

While the ongoing Wall Street rescue has riveted much of the country’s attention, voters in three states — Michigan, North Carolina and Washington state — are being asked to consider a different controversial issue: whether potential cures for millions of Americans are worth the moral cost of destroying human embryos.

Stem-cell research — which uses three-day-old surplus embryos from fertilization clinics to find cures for a variety of deadly and debilitating conditions such as spinal cord injuries, juvenile diabetes, Alzheimer’s, Lou Gherig’s and Parkinson’s disease —  was a pivotal issue in several state elections four years ago. And the question of whether to ban or support the science played a leading role in the outcome of the 2004 congressional races. read more stateline

Fraud Pays: Hwang Gets Patent for Nonexistant Cloned Embryonic Stem Cells

Sometimes I am just amazed. Hwang Woo suk is a charlatan. Readers of SHS and others will recall that, a few years ago, he created an international media sensation by claiming to have created the first cloned embryos from which he obtained patient specific, tailor made, embryonic stem cells. He was lying. An investigation showed he had faked the research.

But now, the Australian government is going to give Hwang a patent on cloned embryonic stem cells! From the story:
Australian patent authorities will likely grant a patent to disgraced Korean stem cell researcher Hwang Woo-suk for a cloned human embryonic stem cell. "Once the registration process is over, Dr. Hwang can collect royalties on the proceeds from the sales of new medicine developed with his technology. His technology will equal the patent on the cloned sheep Dolly," the foundation said.
Well, I guess he can patent the technique--which didn't work--but there are no cloned stem cells to patent. Ridiculous.

On the plus side, Hwang's patent could serve to further impede the development of human cloning, since he might begin demanding payments from anybody who tries. Indeed, that is a major factor that impeded the development of embryonic stem cell research. SecondhandSmoke

In-Vitro Firm Obtains Australia's First License to Clone Human Embryos

An Australian in-vitro-fertilization firm has received the go-ahead this week from its government to achieve what scientists have still failed to achieve: clone human embryos to obtain embryonic stem cells.

Sydney IVF was granted the first licenses issued by the Australian government allowing the creation of cloned embryos for the purpose of extracting human embryonic stem cells, the Embryo Research Licensing Committee of the National Health and Medical Research Council (NHMRC) announced on its Web site Tuesday.

The three licenses obtained by the in-vitro fertilization firm permits them to use embryos created using Somatic Cell Nuclear Transfer (SCNT) techniques and clinically unusable human eggs.

The SCNT technique, which involves placing a skin cell in place of the nucleus of an unfertilized egg, was used to clone Dolly the sheep. The technique could technically also be used to clone humans - a highly-charged moral and ethics issue that has been firmly opposed by many Christians. read more ChristianPost

Attempt to ID Babies With Down For Eugenic Abortion Costing Other Babies Their Lives

According to a UK study, the concerted drive to prenatally detect Down syndrome or other anomalies through genetic testing aimed at eugenic abortion is also causing the deaths of babies who have no disabling condition through miscarriage. From the story:
Two healthy babies are miscarried for every three Down's Syndrome babies that are detected and prevented from being born, research has suggested...

DSEI chief executive Frank Buckley and Professor Sue Buckley, who conducted their research using a database at London's Bart's Hospital, also point out that 95 per cent of women deemed to be high risk by the blood test will not be carrying a baby with the disorder, yet most go on to have the tests.
"The screening for Down's syndrome has consequences for every pregnant woman," they said. "You cannot look at it as just a search-and-destroy mission focused on babies with Down's alone." read more Wesley S Smith

Body May Reject Transplanted Human Embryonic Stem Cells

Finding suggests that embryonic stem cell therapy could encounter the same problems organ transplants do

The much-ballyhooed human embryonic stem cell apparently may share a problem with transplanted organs: a high probability of rejection.

Researchers at Stanford University School of Medicine found that mice mounted an immune response after being injected with human embryonic stem cells (hESCs). The result: all the transplanted stem cells—which hold the promise of maturing into several different types of tissue—were dead within a week.

Wu says that the fact that the hESCs could not survive in the mouse, coupled with previous work showing that the animals also reject mice ESCs, suggests that if human stem cells were transplanted to a patient, they would very likely provoke an immune response. The U.S. Food and Drug Administration, however, has not approved the injection of hESCs into patients because the raw cells have the potential to become cancerous.

According to Stanford radiologist Joseph Wu, co-author of a study appearing in Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences USA, the study tells scientists that such cells do not slip under the radar of our immune systems. Some scientists had believed they did, because an embryo is "foreign" to a mother. After all, half of its genes—and therefore some percentage of its protein makeup—are from the father. read more ScientificAmerican

Undermining Public Trust in Organ Donation

There is a story out today that I find very disturbing, for it both reflects the apparent urge among some organ professionals to cross crucial ethical boundaries and promotes public confusion about when someone can be properly declared dead. It involves heart transplants from babies and implies strongly that ethical rules were ignored in the organ procurement procedure.

From the AP story:
The Denver cases are detailed in Thursday's New England Journal of Medicine. The editors, noting the report is likely to be controversial, said they published it to promote discussion of cardiac-death donation, especially for infant heart transplants.
They also included three commentaries and assembled a panel discussion with doctors and ethicists. Many of the remarks related to the widely accepted "dead donor rule" and the waiting time between when the heart stops and when it is removed to make sure that it doesn't start again on its own.
In two of the Denver cases, doctors waited only 75 seconds; the Institute of Medicine has suggested five minutes, and other surgeons use two minutes.
State laws stipulate that donors must be declared dead before donation, based on either total loss of brain function or heart function that is irreversible. Some commentators contended that the Denver cases didn't meet the rule since it was possible to restart the transplanted hearts in the recipients. "In my opinion, it's an open-and-shut case. They don't have irreversibility, and they don't have death," said Robert Veatch, a professor of medical ethics at Georgetown University.

When I agree with Robert Veatch, it is a rare day! I support "heart death" procurements with the 5 minute waiting period, and still support brain death as dead, despite some admittedly important issues being brought up about that matter--which we will not discuss here. read more Wesley J Smith

Oregon Pro-Life Group: Reject Embryonic Stem Cell Research Tax Funding

Oregon House Majority Leader Dave Hunt recently said that, under his leadership during the 2009 session of the state House, he plans to push forward a measure forcing state taxpayers to fund embryonic stem cell research. But Oregon Right to Life says state residents should be forced to pay for it.

Hunt says the House of Representatives will aggressively revisit their support of taxpayer funding for embryonic stem cell research.

The comments come after pro-life advocates successfully defeated HB 2801 in the 2007 session. It would have established a committee to oversee and issue taxpayer-financed grants for the controversial science.

But because embryonic stem cell research involves the destruction of human life and has never been successful in helping patients, ORTL executive director Gayle Atteberry tells LifeNews.com it should be rejected. read more LifeNews

Consent Problems May Stall Researchers' Use of Some Embryonic Stem Cells

Some of the embryonic stem cells that are eligible for limited federal funding may be off limits to researchers because of problems obtaining proper consent to use them. Scientists at Stanford University and Johns Hopkins University are concerned that consent for some of the cells was not properly obtained.

The concerns come after University of Wisconsin scientist Robert Streiffer obtained copies of the consent forms given to donors of the 21 lines that were approved for funding under a Bush policy of not funding any new embryonic research.

Streiffer found the forms did not conform to US National Academy of Sciences guidelines, with some of them having minor deviations and some having egregious errors.

Now, according to a report in the scientific journal Nature, research universities across the country are questioning whether they should use the cells and Stanford officials have ruled five of the lines off limits.

Story Landis, the head of the National Institutes of Health Stem Cell Task Force told Nature that it has no plans to take any of the lines out of its registry.

“Streiffer’s paper deals with application of 2008 standards to cell lines that were put on the registry in 2001,” she says.

Responding to the news, a leading pro-life advocate in England says the cells shouldn't be used because unborn children -- who couldn't give their consent -- were killed to obtain them. read more LifeNews

NJ Gov Corzine criticized for pushing stem cell research

Gov. Jon Corzine is facing criticism for pushing New Jersey as a state where stem cell study can flourish, less than a year after voters rejected a state plan to borrow millions to encourage the controversial research.

Corzine discussed stem cell research with doctors and scientists at the Hadassah Medical Center in Jerusalem during a recent visit to Israel. And in May, the state gave a California stem cell research company $589,000 in grants to open a New Jersey office and create 12 new jobs.

Corzine said he doesn't see his efforts as a slap at voters who overwhelmingly rejected investing in stem cell research nine months ago.

"I wouldn't know why," Corzine said when asked if voters should feel slighted.

He blamed November's voter defeat on worries about the economy in a state that is $32 billion in debt. New Jersey is the nation's fourth-most indebted state. read more dailyrecord

NJ Proposed Stem Cell Legislation: Another Stealth Attempt to Ignore the Will of Voters?

Just last November, New Jersey voters soundly and resoundingly rejected a scheme to borrow $450 million for stem cell research because our citizens did not want more debt and higher taxes for impractical and immoral embryonic stem cell research. Still, Assemblyman Neil Cohen recently announced plans to introduce legislation to create the "New Jersey Stem Cell Research Assistance Program" purporting to jumpstart financing for stem cell research in the State. The plan would include taxpayer indemnification for private investors when research institutions default on loans. The proposal also would expand the authority of the Economic Development Authority and the Commission on Science and Technology.

A recent report, however, suggests that the proposal will violate the will of New Jersey's voters on embryonic stem cell research. The current edition of NJ BIZ reports, "Under Cohen's plan, the money raised would be used to extend loans to stem cell research, and there could later be funding for embryonic stem cell research, [Cohen] said." (NJ BIZ, July 7, 2008, "Is Private Stem Cell Funding Coming" (emphasis added)).

"We will urge opposition to this and any other stealth effort to circumvent the will of the people unless there is a guarantee expressly written into the legislation that this proposal shall never include funding for embryonic stem cell research," stated Marie Tasy, Executive Director of New Jersey Right to Life. "As presently written, this proposal sets the foundation to later enact an end-run around the voters to fund embryonic stem cell research. The impractical, immoral, and unsafe nature of embryonic stem cell research will ensure a default on loans, guaranteeing tax credits to the financial institutions, which, in turn, will be transferred onto the backs of the hard working citizens of New Jersey through higher taxes," Tasy said. read more

Frozen embryos better than fresh, study shows

Using frozen instead of fresh embryos produces healthier babies, a new study shows.

Infants born from embryos which were frozen and then thawed before being implanted into a woman had a higher birth weight and were less likely to suffer abnormalities.

Fewer of the children were also twins or triplets.

Multiple births are known to increase the risk of complications as well as the danger to the mother. read more Telegraph

Human-pig hybrid embryos given go ahead

A licence to create human-pig embryos to study heart disease has been issued by the fertility watchdog.

This marks the third animal-human hybrid embryo licence to be issued by Human Fertilisation and Embryology Authority and the first since the Commons voted in favour of this controversial research last month.

An HFEA spokesman said it had approved an application from the Clinical Sciences Research Institute, University of Warwick, for the creation of hybrid embryos. The centre has been offered a 12 month licence with effect from today, July 1.

The effort at the University of Warwick is led by Professor Justin St John. "This new license allows us to attempt to make human pig clones to produce embryonic stem cells," he said, where embryonic stem cells are able to turn into the 200 plus types in the body. read more Telegraph 7.3

Golden Clone Giveaway: One lucky person will receive FREE cloning of his or her dog

BioArts International and the Best Friends Again program has established the Golden Clone Giveaway

Ohio gov. to veto provision blocking cloning research

Ohio Gov. Ted Strickland says he will veto the portion of a $1.3 billion funding bill that says state funds cannot be used for human cloning research.

Some say such research could lead to breakthroughs in fighting debilitating diseases and draw biomedical research companies to the state. Opponents consider it unethical and too undeveloped. read more

Alternatives to embryonic stem cells producing success stories

Large strides have been made in the field of stem cell research – while avoiding the use of embryonic stem cells.  One such example occurred in Colorado last Tuesday.  A spinal surgeon completed the first disc surgery in the U.S. using adult (somatic) stem cells to repair a man’s lower back.

The operation, which was completed to alleviate the patient’s extreme lower back pain, took place at the Medical Center of Aurora in Aurora, Colorado by Dr. Jeffrey Kleiner. 

Dr. Kleiner told the Rocky Mountain News that though this is the first one, it is something they’d like to begin doing more of – if it is proven successful.  “Like all scientific processes, we're hopeful for a home run, but we have to take this one step at a time. We're just looking for relatively small gains." read more CNA 6.8

Experts may clone dead people's tissue

British government officials say they are considering legal action to allow scientists to use dead donors' tissue in stem cell cloning research.

Health ministers have requested that experts be permitted to use human tissue to clone embryonic stem cells regardless of whether they have the donor's specific permission, The Times of London reported Sunday.

It is reported tissue stored for as long as three decades could be used in the stem cell research if legal approval is given. Experts would be allowed to use tissue from donors who cannot be reached because they have died or otherwise can't be contacted, the Times said.

Officials said the amendment to the Human Fertilization and Embryology Bill has been tabled and is set to be discussed in coming days, the newspaper said. UPI 6.1

Exclusive Rights to Clone Dogs and Cats for CA Firm

Start Licensing, Inc. (Start) today announced that it has granted a sole, worldwide license for the cloning of dogs, cats and endangered species to BioArts International, Ltd. (BioArts) of Mill Valley, California. The license includes the grant of an exclusive option to BioArts for exclusivity in dog and cat cloning.

Our agreement strengthens BioArts’ position as the world’s leading quality provider of companion animal cloning services,” said Jonathan Thatcher, president of Start. read more biz.yahoo 5.21

Britain OKs Hybrid Human Cloning Combining Animal and Human DNA

Members of the British Parliament, on a lopsided vote, approved allowing scientists to make hybrids combining animal and human DNA in human cloning attempts. The House of Commons rejected an amendment to the Human Fertilisation and Embryology Bill that would have prevented it.

MPs voted 336 to 176 against the amendment from Tory former minister Edward Leigh.

He said the use of hybrid clones cross an "entirely new ethical boundary," and turn the UK into a scientific "rogue state."

"In many ways we are like children playing with landmines without any concept of the dangers of the technology that we are handling," he said, according to a Press Association report.

Members of parliament also voted 286 to 223 to reject a second amendment that would have prohibited so-called "true hybrids" using the sex cells of a human and an animal. read more LifeNews

Steven Pinker's Stupid Tantrum

I just read a ridiculous screed by Steven Pinker in the New Republic that is beyond ludicrous. His primary purpose seems to be to attack Leon Kass, who agree or disagree with him, is a very serious thinker. A secondary point seems to be that the President's Council on Bioethics is pushing a Catholic agenda. The third point is that human dignity is no basis for crafting public policy and bioethical principles.

It might help his case if Pinker could get his facts straight. Case in point: Pinker writes that Kass was appointed to head the President's Council on Bioethics, "a position from which he convinced the president to outlaw federally funded research that used new stem-cell lines." But that is exceedingly strange since, 1) the Council did not exist when the president's policy was made and, indeed, was only created in the aftermath of that decision, 2) if Kass (who is Jewish) were really pushing the Catholic line, the President would not have permitted any funding of ESCR. You see, the Catholic Church opposed the Bush plan, and 3) as far as I know Kass has never publicly commented upon funding of ESCR nor on it propriety or lack thereof. But what the hey, why let facts ruin a good demagogic jeremiad? read more SecondhandSmoke

Scientist team creates first GM human embryo

Scientists have created what is believed to be the first genetically modified (GM) human embryo.

A team from Cornell University in New York produced the GM embryo to study how early cells and diseases develop. It was destroyed after five days.

The British regulator, the Human Fertilisation and Embryology Authority (HFEA), has warned that such controversial experiments cause “large ethical and public interest issues”.

News of the development comes days before MPs are to debate legislation that would allow scientists to use similar techniques in this country. read more TimesOnLine

California's Prop 71 Promised Cures - Getting Expensive, Fancy Buildings on Borrowed Money

When the creators of Proposition 71 spent tens of millions buying a constitutional amendment in California to permit human cloning research, they promised CURES! CURES! CURES! And what are people spending hundreds of millions of dollars of borrowed money on? EXPENSIVE FANCY BUILDINGS! EXPENSIVE FANCY BUILDINGS EXPENSIVE FANCY BUILDINGS! From the story in today's San Francisco Chronicle:
The governing board of the California Institute for Regenerative Medicine is expected to give final approval today to a package of grants that will prompt a construction boom at academic campuses throughout the state.

More than three-quarters of a billion dollars in laboratory construction will get under way as early as next month, seeded by $271 million in facilities grants made possible by the passage of Proposition 71.

MO: Judge rewrites part of proposed stem cell amendment

Both opponents and supporters applauded a judge’s decision May 2 to rewrite part of a proposed constitutional amendment banning a particular type of embryonic stem cell research.

The decision by the Missouri Court of Appeals, Western District, was largely symbolic, though, because supporters of the measure are not soliciting signatures to get it on the November ballot.

Cures Without Cloning, the sponsoring group, would have needed to turn in about 150,000 signatures by Sunday’s deadline. The group said it hopes to try again to get the measure on the 2010 ballot.

At issue before the appellate court was a ballot summary of the proposal, written by Secretary of State Robin Carnahan, designed to explain the proposed amendment to voters. read more ColumbiaMissourian

Half man, half chimp - should we beware the apeman's coming?

British Parliament Could Vote on Human Cloning Bill as Early as May 12

The British parliament could vote on the long-awaited and hotly-debated Human Fertilisation and Embryology Bill as early as May 12. The measure would allow scientists engage in grisly human cloning projects involving the combination of human and animal parts.

The first main debate, or second reading vote, in the British House of Commons on the government's legislation is expected to be no less contentious than the discussion leading up to it.

Pro-life groups have castigated the government of Prime Minister Gordon Brown for putting England in the lead internationally in promoting and advocating the most unethical scientific experiments imaginable. read more LifeNews

Bill to Ban Human-Animal Hybrid Creation Introduced in Congress

Rep. Chris Smith introduced the Human-Animal Hybrid Prohibition Act, H.R. 5910, to ban the creation of part-human, part-animal hybrid beings. The legislation is timely as researchers are already tinkering with human-animal hybrid technologies.  British scientists are actively perfecting the hybrid technique.  On April 1, 2008 the BBC reported that, "Scientists at Newcastle University have created part-human, part-animal hybrid embryos for the first time in the UK."

The Act places a ban on the creation, transfer, or transportation of a human-animal hybrid. Human-animal hybrids are defined as:

1) A human embryo into which animal cells are introduced, making its humanity uncertain.
2a) An embryo created by fertilizing a human egg with non-human sperm.
2b) An embryo created by fertilizing a non-human egg with human sperm.
3a) An embryo created by introducing a non-human nucleus into a human egg.
3b) An embryo created by introducing a human nucleus into a non-human egg.
4) An embryo containing mixed sets of chromosomes from both a human and animal.
5) An animal with human reproductive organs.
6) An animal with a whole or predominantly human brain.

The matter is not only of interest to pro-life advocates.  Environmental activists and those concerned for public health also have reasons to seek a ban on such experimentation.  LifeSite 4.25

Embryonic stem cells coaxed into key heart cells

Scientists say they have coaxed human embryonic stem cells into becoming three of the major cell types in the human heart, and they improved cardiac function when transplanted into mice.

The findings, published in the journal Nature on Wednesday, showed that scientists can efficiently make different kinds of human heart cells for use in basic and clinical research. news.yahoo 4.24

Embryonic stem cell debate trips up Ohio cloning bill

Some Ohio lawmakers have proposed a ban on human cloning, saying it's unethical and unnecessary.

But the proposal is meeting resistance from scientists and the medical community because they say it could shut down research on a promising area of stem-cell research.

Scientists say stem cells from cloned embryos could one day lead to cures for debilitating diseases like cancer and Parkinson's.

But Delta Republican Sen. Steve Buehrer, who proposed the cloning ban, says cloning for research purposes and to create offspring is an unethical use of science.

The medical community agrees that cloning to create offspring should be banned.

The bill is set for another committee hearing in the coming weeks. WKYZ

Second Bioethics Watchdog Says New Human Cloning Technique is Hype

A second bioethics watchdog has told LifeNews.com that claims the new announcement of a supposedly easier method of human cloning is hogwash. Yesterday, mainstream media outlets in Britain and the U.S. trumpeted a supposedly new method of making human or animal clones.

The media reports claim the new technique is safer than the one used with Dolly the sheep, that resulted in hundreds of dead embryos and its euthanasia.

Scientists made chimeras by injecting an iPS cell into an existing mouse embryo to create a so-called "tetraploid" embryo.

Two one-cell mouse embryos are fused together to make a single cell and then the iPS cell is surrounded by "tetraploid" cells in a mixture that reforms an embryo structure.

American-based Advanced Cell Technology representative Robert Lanza responded to the new technique saying it is "unethical and unsafe" and making it appear there is a problem with research using iPS cells. read more LifeNews 4.16

New stem cell technique could make human cloning easier

Some fear the technique will be used by IVF doctors to help infertile couples who want to have their own biological children.

Scientists have now used the same iPS cell creation procedure to create baby mice from the skin cells of adult animals.  Adult mouse skin cells, reprogrammed to become iPS cells, were inserted into early embryos produced by in-vitro fertilization (IVF).  Some of the offspring were partial clones, known as chimeras, sharing the genetic material of both the original embryo and the inserted iPS cells.  Other offspring were full clones, like Dolly the Sheep, completely matching the genetic make-up of the donor cell.

“It's unethical and unsafe, but someone may be doing it today," said Robert Lanza, chief scientific officer of American biotechnology company Advanced Cell Technology, a pioneering company in stem cell and stem cell reprogramming research. read more CNA 4.15

Pro-Life Senator: FDA Shouldn't Allow Human Embryonic Stem Cell Trials

Sen. Sam Brownback, a leading pro-life advocate, is calling on the Food and Drug Administration to reject bids from two human cloning companies to start trials on humans with embryonic stem cells. Brownback says there are moral issues involved and medical risks for patients.

FDA officials are meeting with representatives of Geron Corp. and Advanced Cell Technology Inc. today to discuss the possibilities.

“I am deeply concerned that the Food and Drug Administration is discussing procedures for conducting experiments on humans with embryonic stem cells,” Brownback told LifeNews.com.

Brownback said the embryonic stem cell trials could easily put patients at risk and pointed to "devastating patient results" with trials several years ago involving fetal tissue from babies victimized by abortion.

"The problem was the cells were too immature and tended to form tumors or grow in uncontrolled ways that could not be reversed in the humans who underwent experimentation," the senator explained. read more LifeNews

FDA Examining Requests to Use Embryonic Stem Cells in Human Trials

The Food and Drug Administration is considering a request from two biotech companies to begin human trials involving human embryonic stem cells. The two companies involved have been claiming for years they were ready to start human trials but pro-life advocates are concerned problems still remain.

Embryonic stem cell research has not yet been successful in animals because of two significant reasons.

Unlike adult stem cells, when embryonic stem cells are injected as a treatment they form tumors and the immune system rejects the foreign cells.

Yet, Geron Corp. and Advanced Cell Technology Inc. both say they plan to start human trials this yet and are requesting FDA approval to do so. Both claim to now have tumor-free experiments involving animals. LifeNews 4.10

Scientists Admit Embryonic Stem Cell Research Hasn't Been Successful

While pro-life advocates have repeated the mantra for years that embryonic stem cell research hasn't helped a single patient while adult stem cells have already been used in humans afflicted with dozens of diseases, a leading scientist in England is beginning to admit defeat.

Lord Patel of Dunkeld, the chairman of the UK National Stem Cell Network and a chancellor at Dundee University, says embryonic stem cell research is simply not working.

He conceded in an interview with the Scotsman newspaper that the controversial science may never deliver new treatments for diseases.

"In terms of embryonic stem cell therapy, there is currently no such therapy that is available in a large number of patients," he said. read more LifeNews 4.8

First "hybrid" embryos created in England

Scientists at Newcastle University have created part-human, part-animal hybrid embryos for the first time in the UK, the BBC can reveal.

The embryos survived for up to three days and are part of medical research into a range of illnesses.

It comes a month before MPs are to debate the future of such research.

The Catholic Church describes it as "monstrous". But medical bodies and patient groups say such research is vital for our understanding of disease.

They argue that the work could pave the way for new treatments for conditions such as Parkinson's and Alzheimer's.

Egg shortages

Under the microscope the round bundles of cells look like any other three-day-old embryos.

In fact they are hybrids - part-human, part-animal. read more BBCNews 4.2

Scientists Excited Bush Stem Cell Research Policy May Change After Elections

Scientists who engage in stem cell research are excited that the policy President Bush has put in place about the practice could be overturned with the election of a new president. Bush prevented making taxpayers fund any new embryonic stem cell research with their tax dollars because it involves the destruction of human life.

However, each of the three major contenders for the presidency -- John McCain, Barack Obama and Hillary Clinton -- have voted for bills to overturn those limits.

According to a San Jose Mercury News report, scientists at the recent Global Forum of the International Society for Stem Cell Research discussed the potential for the policy to be overturned quickly after the election of a new president.

But Dorinda Bordlee, the vice-president of the Bioethics Defense Fund, tells LifeNews.com the glee of cloning scientists may be premature.

On one hand, McCain appears more open to the pro-life perspective on embryonic stem cell research than before his presidential candidacy and top-flight pro-life advocates like Sam Brownback have been heavily lobbying him against it. LifeNews read more

Wisconsin Alumni Foundation Owns Embryonic Stem Cell Research

From Wesley J Smith, SecondhandSmoke

Well, all of the patents over ESCR held by the Wisconsin Alumni Research Foundation have been upheld by the Patent Office. From the story:

The rulings mean the foundation will continue to control primary
intellectual property rights to embryonic stem cell research in the United States. If that research leads to successful medical products or procedures before the patents expire in 2015, the school could win royalties.

The Foundation for Taxpayer and Consumer Rights and the Public Patent Foundation, which asked the patent office to throw out the patents in 2006, argued that their enforcement slowed U.S. stem cell research and drove some investment overseas.

Federal Government Upholds Two More Embryonic Stem Cell Research Patents

Some say the battle over embryonic stem cell research funding is the main source of contention in the stem cell research debate. However, for scientists, it's about patents. The U.S. Patent and Trademark Office has upheld two more patents following a decision in February upholding another.

The Wisconsin Alumni Research Foundation, which holds the original patent on embryonic stem cells, has been a thorn in some scientists' side because it controls how scientists can use the controversial stem cells and how much it costs to use them. read more LifeNews 3.11

Say no to mini-me

Advocates of human cloning persist in their efforts to keep human cloning legal and, in some states, subsidized with taxpayer funds.

"Why? Critics of human cloning research have long argued that the drive for cures masked the real intentions of cloning researchers, namely, the pursuit of knowledge without boundaries or restraint. The humanist elements of our culture have long sought mastery of nature, and mastery over the creation of human life for some scientists represents the ultimate vindication of the power of the human species. But allowing scientists to tinker with the creation of human life through cloning subverts human dignity by turning humans into research commodities and giving one class of individuals unlimited power over another.

"A serious commitment to human rights by our government must include an aim to deal with issues as fundamental to human dignity as human cloning. Given that more than 70 percent of Americans believe that human embryo cloning should not be permitted, our government's silence on this issue is deafening." WashTimes

— Michelle C. Kirtley, writing on "A Surprise Consensus on Stem Cells," Feb. 29 at the Center for Public Justice

American pays $50000 to clone dead dog

The prospect of having nine lives is no longer the preserve of cats. In a happy mix of science and commerce, man's best friend can now live again and again - if the owner is besotted and rich enough.

The South Korean stem cells scientists who produced Snuppy, a cloned Afghan hound, have received the world's first commercial order to clone a dog and are preparing to recreate Booger, a pitbull terrier from California. It is an order they hope will lead to the production of as many as 500 born-again pets each year. read more FTD 3.4

S Korean scientist caught faking breathrough research

A South Korean scientist who once said he wanted to be as famous as now-disgraced stem cell expert Hwang Woo-Suk has been caught faking his study, news reports here said Saturday.

The Korea Advanced Institute of Science and Technology (KAIST) said Friday it had suspended bioscience professor Kim Tae-kook for fabricating data in two papers, which had been hailed as breakthroughs and were published in two renowned journals.

The controversial papers include "A Magnetic Nanoprobe Technology for Detecting Molecular Interactions in Live Cells" published in Science in July 2005 and "Small Molecule-Based Reversible Reprogramming of Cellular Lifespan" released in Nature Chemicalbiology in July 2006. read more AFP 3.2

Biotech Firm to Provide Alternatives to Vaccines Using Tissue From Abortions

A biotech firm has announced it will offer ethical alternatives to some of the vaccines that currently rely on the use of fetal tissue from abortions. The Seattle-based AVM Biotechnology says it will produce ethical alternatives in the fields of biotechnology, pharmaceuticals, and vaccine development.

The news gives hope to pro-life people who have been reluctant to use some vaccines because their development came as a result of the destruction of unborn children.

“We will be working to bring commercially available, morally acceptable, vaccines to the US market and to use existing technology to produce new morally certified vaccines," says Dr. Theresa Deisher, the research and development director for AVM. read more LifeNews 2/29

Embryonic Stem Cell Superiority Myth is Crumbling

From SecondhandSmoke

With the exception of the Missouri media and perhaps, the New York Times, it is now clear that adult stem cells offer tremendous hope for treatments for a wide variety of ailments. The Journal of the American Medical Association reports some good news. From a video presentation:

Adult stem cell therapy has become a standard of care when treating several types of cancer. Now a review of clinical trials involving adult stem cells during the past ten years indicates they are helping patients who have a variety of diseases and even heart trouble. One patient diagnosed with multiple sclerosis says his symptoms are gone. Jennifer Mitchell explains in this week's JAMA Report...

Dr. Richard Burt and his colleagues at Northestern University reviewed the outcomes of about twenty-five hundred patients who had stem cell transplants. They found the cells appear to be putting some patients with autoimmune diseases into remission and are offering some improvement in heart patients who have suffered heart attacks... AUDIO:"It's a whole new approach to these diseases. Rather than just surgery or drugs that you can use, a cellular approach that seems in many different studies to be benefitting the patient." ... video presentation

 

 

Missouri: Judge rewrites contentious ballot summary for stem cell initiative

A judge rewrote the ballot language Wednesday for a proposed constitutional amendment banning a particular kind of embryonic stem cell research after supporters claimed the state’s original description was biased.

The ruling marks the second time that courts have struck down ballot summaries prepared by Secretary of State Robin Carnahan for contentious initiatives. Last month, a judge also rewrote the ballot language for a proposal limiting affirmative action programs.

Cole County Circuit Judge Patricia Joyce ruled that Carnahan’s summary of the stem cell amendment was “insufficient and unfair” but didn’t elaborate on why in her short written decision.

The ballot proposal would reverse part of a constitutional amendment narrowly approved by voters in 2006 that ensured all federally allowed stem cell research and treatments can occur in Missouri. That measure allowed the use of an embryonic cloning technique, which the latest proposal seeks to ban. Columbia Missourian 2/20 read more

Korean firm bids to clone dead pets

The world's first pet cloning service is to offer animal lovers the chance to recreate their dead companions, it was announced today.

South Korean company RNL Bio will work alongside scientists who created the first cloned canine. A company spokeswoman said it was already working on its first order from an American who wanted a clone of her dead pit bull.

The client, Bernann McKunney, of California, was very attached to the pet because it had saved her life during an attack by another dog.

Kim Yoon said that ear tissue from the dog had been preserved at a US biotech laboratory before its death.

DNA from the sample could now be used in an attempt to create a clone, she said, although the chances of success were about 25%.

RNL Bio is charging customers $150,000 (£75,000) for the clones, which clients pay only after they receive their new pet. Guardian read more

Minnesota House Panel Backs Measure Promoting Tax-Funded Human Cloning

A Minnesota House panel approved a measure on Thursday that concerns pro-life advocates because it would approve and fund human cloning and the killing of human embryos at the University of Minnesota. The panel voted 11-8 for the Kahn–Cohen Cloning Bill that would force taxpayers to fund destructive research.

A leading pro-life group told LifeNews.com that the bill promotes the destruction of human life on a scale never before seen in Minnesota, and also requires university scientists to kill all cloned human beings or face felony charges.

“This is the most shocking and dangerous threat to human life in years,” Minnesota Citizens Concerned for Life legislative associate Jenny Hoelscher told LifeNews.com.

“It is difficult for taxpayers to believe that their elected officials are even considering legislation which would require such massive destruction of human life," she added.

SF 100 would allow millions of dollars in taxpayer funds to be used to kill living human embryos. Taxpayer funds would also be available to finance the cloning of human embryos for the sole purpose of destroying them for experimentation. LifeNews 2/14 read more

Biotech Company Hints at Embryonic Stem-Cell Therapy Testing on Adults for the Tenth Time

A California-based biotech company has predicted that embryonic stem-cell treatment tests on adult human beings could happen as soon as a few months from now. This is the tenth time in five years that such a prediction has been made, with researchers still awaiting the green light from the Food and Drug Administration to begin conducting the controversial research.

Geron Corporation, a leader in embryonic stem-cell experimentation, is eager to begin testing on human beings, despite the admission that any medical benefits from the treatment are likely years away at best.

Dr. Thomas Okarma, CEO of Geron Corporation, dismissed the notion of using adult stem cells instead of embryos, claiming that embryonic stem-cells are more useful. read more LifeSite 2/13

Nebraska Pro-Life Group Says Media Misreport Stem Cell Research Bill

A leading pro-life group in Nebraska says media outlets there are misreporting a new bill on embryonic stem cell research as a compromise between pro-life groups and legislators who want taxpayer dollars used on the destructive science. The organization says it can't support the bill and is working for alternative legislation.

At the end of last week, media outlets reported that a bill the legislature’s judiciary Committee approved on a 6-1 margin was supposedly a compromise between both sides. The measure bans human cloning for reproductive purposes but appears to allow scientists to clone and kill human embryos for research.

But Julie Schmit-Albin, the executive director of Nebraska Right to Life, tells LifeNews.com that the measure, LB 606, is not a compromise on bioethics issues and her organization, and other pr-life groups, don't support it.

She told LifeNews.com that the pro-life groups in the coalition “met and went through the LB 606 language section by section and found at least four egregious sections which would need to be addressed before some or all of our groups could even support LB 606.” read more LifeNews 2/9

Three-parent embryo formed in lab

Scientists believe they have made a breakthrough in IVF treatment by creating a human embryo with three separate parents.

The Newcastle University team believe the technique could help to eradicate a whole class of hereditary diseases, including some forms of epilepsy.

The embryos have been created using DNA from a man and two women in lab tests. It could ensure women with genetic defects do not pass the diseases on to their children.

So while any baby born through this method would have genetic elements from three people, the nuclear DNA that influences appearance and other characteristics would not come from the woman providing the donor egg.

Josephine Quintavalle, of the pro-life group Comment on Reproductive Ethics, said it was "risky, dangerous" and a step towards "designer babies". "It is human beings they are experimenting with," she said.BBCNews 2/5 read more

Men No Longer Needed?: Scientists Use Female Adult Stem Cells to Create "Female Sperm"

"'Female sperm', 'male eggs' and 'same-sex reproduction' - whether these terms fill you with hope or disgust, a reproductive revolution is already in progress," begins a recent New Scientist report on some of the most bizarre and disturbing scientific research being conducted by stem cell scientists.

"In a handful of labs across the world, biologists are trying to make genetically male cells develop into eggs, and female cells into sperm. If successful, their efforts might one day allow lesbian and gay couples to have children that are genetically their own," the report continues.

Scientists at Newcastle upon Tyne University in the U.K. claim to have already used adult stem cells to create primitive sperm, reports New Scientist. Karim Nayernia, a stem-cell biologist at Newcastle, made adult stem cells derived from male bone marrow develop into spermatogonia, and then coaxed the spermatgonia to undergo meisois, thereby becoming mature sperm with sufficient genetic information to impregnate a human egg. LifeSite read more

NM: Embryonic stem cell bill clears Senate

For the second year in a row, a bill authorizing stem cell research on embryos in New Mexico has been narrowly approved by the state Senate. The vote was 20-18 for the measure supported by Gov. Bill Richardson. It now goes to the House.

The legislation would allow research only on embryos slated to be destroyed at fertility clinics.

Allen Sanchez, executive director of the New Mexico Conference of Catholic Bishops, said the church regards it as a pro-life issue because it objects to "giving our state the authority to take human life."

Gov. Richardson, a Catholic, applauded the Senate, saying it "recognized that our clinical research laws are out of date, and we should move forward to conduct potentially life-saving research under careful conditions and important restrictions." LCSunNews 1/29 read more

Michigan: Proposal to allow stem-cell research submitted

A group seeking to expand medical research using embryonic stem cells in Michigan announced Tuesday that it has submitted language for a proposed constitutional amendment that would reverse the state’s prohibition on the destruction of human embryos for research purposes.

The Stem Cell Ballot Question Committee in Michigan wants to authorize the use of excess or unsuitable embryos from fertility clinics that “would otherwise be discarded unless they are used for research.” In contrast to legislation designed to open up research on stem cells, the ballot proposal also affirms Michigan’s law prohibiting human cloning. freep 1/29 read more

Biotech Firm Claims to Have Used Human Cloning to Create Unborn Child

A team at the tiny San Diego biotechnology company Stemagen has become the first to document its successful cloning of human embryos by fusing donated egg cells with the DNA from skin cells of an adult man, according to an article that will be published online today by the journal Stem Cells.

The company's work, led by chief science officer Andrew French, is a major step toward creating embryonic stem cell lines from cloned human embryos, or cells that are specific to one person and capable of evolving into the 200 different cell types in the body.

Theoretically such cells one day could be used as a human toolbox: Someone's own embryonic stem cells could be transplanted into that person without the fear of rejection and could replace cells destroyed by diseases such as diabetes and Parkinson's.

The process, known as therapeutic cloning, has plenty of opponents because the embryo theoretically could be implanted into a woman's uterus for reproduction. 1/17 read more

Researchers Implant Aborted Fetal Tissue in Mouse Hybrids

American scientists are using tissue from aborted babies in genetically engineered mice to study how certain diseases are spread, and the experiments are being paid for with U.S. tax dollars.

Transplanting fetal tissue with the goal of helping to cure humans has been legal since 1993. On Jan. 22 of that year, President Clinton ordered Secretary of Health and Human Services Donna Shalala to remove the ban President Reagan had ordered in 1988 on federal funding of any "therapeutic transplantation research" that used human fetal tissue derived from induced abortions.

Congress later passed a law, Public Law 103-43, which states, "no official of the executive branch may impose a policy that the Department of Health and Human Services is prohibited from conducting or supporting any research on the transplantation of human fetal tissue for therapeutic purposes . . ." read more

Company Sells "Personalized" Embryonic Stem Cells

A San Carlos startup is offering to create "personalized" stem cells from the spare embryos of fertility clinic clients on the chance that the cells, frozen and stored away, may some day help a family member benefit from medical breakthroughs.

The novel business plan of StemLifeLine Inc. - which started promoting its service to fertility patients earlier this year as "insurance for the future" - set off a flash fire of protest from stem cell research opponents and supporters alike.

"These companies are essentially taking advantage of people's ignorance and fears to make a buck," said David Magnus, director of the Stanford Center for Biomedical Ethics. full story

"So, let's be clear here: The reason companies such as this--which is charging $7000 to make the cell line and $350 a year for storage--is able to sucker people into destroying their own offspring for their own hoped-for medical benefit, is that "the scientists" hyped this research to the hilt to pass Proposition 71 and destroy the Bush funding policy. If consumers are confused, they and their media and politician camp followers deserve the blame for the confusion." -WesleyJSmith

Fertility research drugs put egg donors at risk

Women who donate their eggs for research are at risk from life-threatening side effects, scientists warn in a new study. They say that the powerful drugs given to the volunteers to help increase the number of eggs they produce can cause paralysis, limb amputation and even death.

The warning comes days before the results of a review into a controversial decision to allow doctors to harvest eggs from healthy volunteers for research purposes. full story