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The source of this article is The Scotsman: http://tinyurl.com/6vqnm Sheep first, human embryos next MICHAEL BLACKLEY THE creator of Dolly the sheep, Ian Wilmut, has applied for a licence to clone human embryos. Mr Wilmut is working on finding a cure for motor neurone disease and has applied for the licence to provide insights into the illness and ways to grow a patient’s cells to treat the disease. The go-ahead for therapeutic cloning in the UK was signalled last month when the first licence of its kind in Europe was granted by the Human Fertilisation and Embryology Authority to a team of geneticists from the University of Newcastle. That team wants to clone human embryos in the hope of curing debilitating conditions such as Alzheimer’s, Parkinson’s and diabetes. Mr Wilmut’s application, in the name of the Roslin Institute, Edinburgh, is also expected to be approved. Motor neurone disease is the name given to a group of related diseases affecting the motor neurones in the brain and spinal cord. Degeneration of the neurones leads to weakness and wasting of the muscles. Under the proposed procedure, doctors take cell samples from an ill patient and create a cloned embryo. This grows into a clump of cells from which doctors can strip out stem cells. These cells can then be grown into almost any of the body’s main types of specialised areas, such as heart or brain tissue. They could then replace damaged cells and provide a potential cure for the disease. Mr Wilmut’s work in 1997 was met by fierce opposition from religious and pro-life groups, which are likely to oppose any new plans to clone human embryos over fears the technology could be abused for reproductive cloning. Human cloning is outlawed across much of Europe, with a global ban being called for by the United States. In a speech to the United Nations last week, the US president, George Bush, said: "I urge all governments to affirm a basic ethical principle: no human life should ever be produced or destroyed for the benefit of another." He added: "We should take seriously the protection of life from exploitation under any pretext." Mr Wilmut believes the use of cloning procedures is not immoral. He has said: "To be frightened of research with embryos and miss out on treatments would be a tragedy. "We need to keep explaining the potential benefits - work which could improve treatment of heart disease, diabetes, arthritis and some forms of blindness. "Some people will always find cloning offensive ... but I suspect for the majority of us it’s not offensive and that is why research should go on." ---------------------------------------------------------------------- To sign-off Parkinsn send a message to: mailto:[log in to unmask] In the body of the message put: signoff parkinsn