National Institute of Health Curtails Stem Cell Research
by CLAIRE MORGENSTERN, Contributing Writer
The U.S. National Institutes of Health issued final changes to federal stem cell research guidelines this week that will ultimately limit the breadth of stem cell research. The changes restrict the federal funding available for stem cell research to limits agreed upon by Congress under previous legislation. This decision comes as a compromise between liberal and conservative factions of Congress. The regulations maintain that human embryonic stem cell research may only be conducted using cells from embryos donated by patients at fertility clinics that would otherwise be discarded. In addition, the rules stated that research involving cells created via cloning technology or parthenogenesis will not be eligible to receive federal funding, forcing researchers who wish to use such technology to turn to private or state grants, or fund the research themselves.
While these changes are setbacks in the eyes of stem cell scientists, they still represent progress from the Bush administration. Earlier this year, President Obama made federal funds available to stem cell researchers when he revoked restrictions that had existed under President Bush. The changes reached by Congress and the NIH serve to define the limits for the federal funding that Obama has allotted. Since Obama has publicly denounced cloning in the past, the specific restriction against it is less surprising than the other restrictions. Those strongly in favor of stem cell research pledge to introduce future legislation that will allow for a wider range of research projects to be eligible for federal funding.
Photo by euthman, Flickr.
- Posted by Causecast
Related causes: Health
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