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Researchers Get Stem Cells From Frozen Embryos By Kim Tae-gyu - Staff Reporter [log in to unmask] 03-02-2004 16:30 Scientists have developed a technology to extract human embryonic stem cells from frozen embryos in a series of breakthroughs in biotechnology. The Maria Biotech team, a Seoul-based institute led by Park Se-pill, announced on Tuesday it harvested seven stem cells from 20 frozen-thawed embryos. Seoul National University professor Hwang Woo-suk, who surprised the world by cloning a human embryo for the first time in the middle of last month, said the medical breakthrough is simply astounding. ``Not to mention the embryos were frozen, such a high success rate is hard to achieve even with fresh embryos. If the announcement is correct, the research is a work of magic hands,’’ Hwang said. Park’s team acquired 20 frozen embryos, which were scheduled to be scrapped after five years in a routine transfer program, from local fertility clinics and extracted 11 inner-cell masses upon consent from donors. The most difficult part in establishing stem cells is to take out the inner-cell masses while keeping them alive, according to Park. To do this, Park’s team used a self-developed technology using a human-cell antibody. Among the 11 inner-cell masses, Park and his colleagues have successfully established seven human embryonic stem-cell lines, which possess great therapeutic applications. ``We can set up a embryonic stem-cell bank like existing bone-marrow banks without having to use many human eggs. The bank will lead to freeing human beings from chronic diseases,’’ Park said. Embryonic stem cells have the ability to divide indefinitely and differentiate into virtually any type of cell and organ, promising wide-ranging clinical applications through transplantation. Unlike the embryonic stem cell acquired by human cloning, however, the organs created from the mass-produced stem cells may be rejected by human bodies, making the need to establish a stem cell bank to find a best fit for a specific patient. Park also does not expect his research will raise ethical concerns, because it was conducted with surplus embryos, left over after embryo transfers for pregnancy operations. ``We think our research will continue relatively free from ethical disputes, as it used frozen embryos that would otherwise be discarded,’’ Park said. Park added his team applied for international patents for their technology in 108 countries across the globe, including the United States, China and Australia. The research was published in the March edition of the British journal Human Reproduction. SOURCE: Korea Times, South Korea http://times.hankooki.com/lpage/200403/kt2004030216285810220.htm * * * ---------------------------------------------------------------------- To sign-off Parkinsn send a message to: mailto:[log in to unmask] In the body of the message put: signoff parkinsn