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The Montreal Gazette Monday 13 August 2001 Time to act on stem cells The Gazette Embryonic stem-cell research poses one of the most difficult moral medical dilemmas many nations have had to face in recent years. The promise behind stem cells from the human embryo is breathtaking. More flexible than stem cells from an adult, or an umbilical cord, or any other source, they seem uniquely capable of learning to become different types of tissue in the body - nerves, organs, muscles and bones - up to as many as 200 types of cell. There is every possibility that diseases such as Alzheimer's, Parkinson's, heart attacks, spinal injuries and diabetes could be cured if research were allowed into stem cells. But the problem lies in the fact that to get these cells, they must be extracted from early-stage embryos, or blastocysts, and the extraction kills the embryo. Countries have taken various positions on the use of embryonic stem cells, although few diverge on how to obtain them. Britain's parliament, for example, voted last December to allow research on human embryos up to 14 days old. It, like most other countries, uses embryos that have been discarded during fertility treatments. The Japanese government has said it will likely approve research on clone embryos and embryonic stem cells within a year. Last week, United States President George W. Bush outlined the American position on stem-cell research. Technically speaking, he will allow federal funding for it but only on condition that researchers confine their work to the existing 60 colonies or lines of cells, those which were extracted from human embryos in the past and are currently the subject of experimentation. The approximately 110,000 other frozen embryos created in the course of in-vitro fertilization are to remain untouched, or "adopted" by childless couples. Mr. Bush's solution was seen, on the one hand, as an effort to please those who believe an embryo is a human being with all attendant rights. It was also seen as a desire to not completely hobble scientific progress in a country that prides itself on its ability to outstrip most other nations in technological and scientific achievement. Scientists, however, felt the small number of stem cells would stymie their efforts. There is also the issue that Mr. Bush's funding restrictions extend only to publicly financed research. The private sector can, and is, moving ahead with research. Canada introduced draft legislation on reproductive technology last May and is expected to pass it next year. Under its proposed provisions, the creation of human embryos for research would be banned. Stem cells taken from discarded embryos created in the process of in-vitro fertilization could, however, be used for research. With the potential to alleviate so much pain and suffering in the world, stem-cell research should be supported. The use of surplus embryos, originally brought into being to create new life and now scheduled to be destroyed, is a reasonable compromise to make. It is time, however, for Canada to act. A clear public policy in this field - unlike the legal void we currently have - will allow scientists to proceed with potentially life-saving research. SOURCE: The Montreal Gazette http://www.montrealgazette.com/editorial/pages/010813/643941.html * * * ---------------------------------------------------------------------- To sign-off Parkinsn send a message to: mailto:[log in to unmask] In the body of the message put: signoff parkinsn