AUSTRALIAN scientists and their regulators will be watching closely the
unfolding debate in the UK over working with stem cells. There is strong local
interest in this research which holds out the hope of curing such ailments as
Parkinson’s disease, Alzheimer’s disease and diabetes, as well as conditions now
requiring organ transplants.
The problem is that stem cells come from embryos. A report to the British
Government, from a panel chaired by the Chief Medical Officer, Liam Donaldson,
has now recommended that research be allowed on “therapeutic cloning”—the
cloning of stem cell tissue for the purpose of repairing damage…
