Monday, June 27, 2005

Stem cell research news

Here's the MSNBC's long article and interview with James Thomson, the first person to isolate and culture embryonic stem cells.
Some excerpts:

Some of Thomson's other pronouncements might seem more surprising: that supporters of stem cell research are overestimating the prospects for transplantation cures, that the current stem cell lines aren't well-suited for such applications anyway, and that there's no need to resort to therapeutic cloning right now — or perhaps ever.....

MSNBC: Does it concern you that there are people who say, "We're this close to solving this sort of disease with stem cells, so let's pass this legislation"?

Thomson: Yeah, it's unfortunate. There are clearly exceptions on both sides, but most of the people who oppose this research, and most of the people who support this research, do it with a profound amount of misinformation. It'd be very nice to clear up that information as much as possible. You can still make an informed choice and be for it or against it, but at least it'd be based on the real facts.....

I guess the news media aren't really the media to educate. The news media failed in that role. … I don't know how to change it, because every time I have an interview with some guy and try to go through what the science is, they talk about curing Alzheimer's.


Meanwhile, researchers at the Children's Hospital in Pittsburgh have discovered that "adult, or post-natal, stem cells have the same ability as embryonic stem cells to multiply, a previously unknown characteristic...."

Researchers from Children's and the University of Pittsburgh in Dr. Huard's laboratory were able to expand post-natal stem cells to a population level comparable to that reached by researchers using embryonic stem cells.


HT: STR Blog

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