"Guilt-Free" Pluripotent Adult Stem Cells?

From The Washington Times

Nigel Cameron, who also has a bio-ethics blog on the Christianity Today site called Life Matters, cites breakthroughs in stem cell research to create embryonic-like stem cells that would be pluripotent, but could be reproduced from ordinary cells. There is an ethical catch though.

The current fight is about whether to use federal dollars to fund experiments using "spare" embryos from in vitro clinics. There is no federal law preventing researchers from using these embryos with private funding. The president has promised to veto a bill that would overturn his compromise and force taxpayers to fund using human embryos for medical research despite their belief it is a grave wrong. The bill narrowly passed in the House and awaits Senate action. But even if it passes the Senate, the votes to override a presidential veto aren't there.

That's one reason there is so much interest in "alternative" ways of getting embryonic-type or "pluripotent" stem cells (cells that can become any type of tissue in the body) -- ways that don't involve destroying embryos.

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