Based on my Wallace background, you can't expect a Scot to clone people since they eat. [:>)}
Bill Ward On Sun, 13 Oct 2002 07:09:09 +0100 Keith Hudson <[EMAIL PROTECTED]> writes: > I've been waiting to hear of Lu Guangxiu's stem cell research which > was > supposed to have been published in Nature sometime this summer. > Meanwhile, > the creator of Dolly the sheep, is hoping to proceed in Scotland, > according > to yesterday's news. The following is from the BBC: > > <<<<< > Bid to clone human embryos > > The first application to clone human embryos in Britain could be > lodged > within six months. Professor Ian Wilmut, from the gene expression > and > development division of Roslin Institute in Edinburgh, plans to > seek > permission to use the technique which created Dolly the sheep on > early > human embryos. Research could then begin on stem cells -- with the > aim of > one day helping combat heart disease or testing how people might > respond to > treatments for other ailments. > > There are still various regulatory hurdles to overcome, but > Professor > Wilmut is confident that he will be successful. However, the > Catholic > Church in Scotland has voiced its opposition to the use of human > embryos > for any such purpose. > > Dolly was cloned by the institute, becoming the first mammal to be > cloned > from an adult cell. Professor Wilmut hopes to use nuclear transfer, > the > technique which cloned Dolly, to clone early human embryos -- > genetically > identical to cells taken from the adult. > > External bodies > > "An application for human stem cell research has evolved and is now > under > way," he confirmed. "If it is approved by the institute's ethics > and > management committee then it will face external bodies. "We expect > the > whole process to take about six months." > > The licensing process would involve at least four ethics > committees, > including the Human Fertilisation and Embryology Authority's science > and > clinical review boards. Professor Wilmut's research has suggested > that all > cloned animals are genetically and physically defective. > > In January, he confirmed that Dolly had arthritis and said the > condition > may have arisen because of genetic defects caused by the cloning > process. > He stressed he had no wish to clone babies by implanting cloned > embryos > into a surrogate mother, a process which is illegal. Professor > Wilmot > believes that this would be unethical and unsafe. > > Instead he hopes to create stem cell lines that could one day help > treat > heart disease or test how someone might respond to drugs. His > research > could focus on growing cardiac cells to repair a failing heart and > nerve > cells to treat Parkinson's disease, or islet cells for diabetes > sufferers. > > Opposition > > However, the Scottish Catholic Church said it opposed the use of > human > embryos for stem cell research. "An embryo is a human life with > potential. > To use that as a means to someone else's end -- however well > intentioned -- > is wrong," said a spokesperson. "We make no distinction between that > and > the forcible removal of organs from a living adult, to another > adult." > > Last year American company Advanced Cell Technology claimed to have > cloned > early human embryos. > >>>> > > > ------------------------------------------------------------------------- --- > ------------ > > Keith Hudson, General Editor, Handlo Music, http://www.handlo.com > 6 Upper Camden Place, Bath BA1 5HX, England > Tel: +44 1225 312622; Fax: +44 1225 447727; > mailto:[EMAIL PROTECTED] > ________________________________________________________________________ > > ________________________________________________________________ GET INTERNET ACCESS FROM JUNO! Juno offers FREE or PREMIUM Internet access for less! Join Juno today! For your FREE software, visit: http://dl.www.juno.com/get/web/.
