---------- Forwarded message ----------
Date: Sat, 12 Aug 2000 17:40:09 PDT
From: AFP <C-afp@clari.net>
Newsgroups: clari.tw.science, clari.world.europe.british_isles.uk,
clari.tw.issues, clari.tw.misc, clari.tw.science+space,
clari.world.europe, clari.world.europe.british_isles
Subject: Britain to allow human cloning for research
LONDON, Aug 13 (AFP) - The British government is set to give its
cautious go-ahead this week to the cloning of human embryos for
therapeutic research, according to media reports here Sunday.
A report by the government's chief medical officer, Liam
Donaldson, is due to be published Wednesday, three months after it
was handed in.
Ministers are expected to agree with its recommendation to allow
cloning, but only for research purposes, the Sunday Telegraph
reported.
However, such are the moral and ethical dimensions of the case
that MPs will be allowed a free vote on the issue, the paper said.
Normally, MPs vote along party lines.
Allowing cloning of human embyro cells for research would accord
with the opinion of many scientists, who believe it will pave the
way to new cures for many illnesses.
Other groups and religious organisations say cloning for
experimentation breaks the sanctity of human life.
At the heart of the matter is the removal of pre-programmed
cells, called stem cells, from embryos less than 14 days old.
Scientists have discovered that such stem cells are capable of
developing into any kind of tissue, including nerves, muscle, organs
and bone.
If, one day, it was possible to direct stem cells to become
selected types of replacement tissue, it could be used to treat a
host of diseases which at present are incurable.
And if the embryos are cloned from a patient's own cells, it
would solve the serious problem of transplant tissue rejection.
The research needed to bring about such a medical revolution is
currently banned in Britain, however.
As the law stands, scientists can only work with stem cells less
than 14 days old to carry out research into understanding fertility,
reproduction or congenital disorders.
Using stem cells for any other purpose is outlawed, as is the
cloning of human embryos.
In December 1998 two research watchdogs recommended the law be
relaxed to allow therapeutic cloning for medical research. Last year
the government set up an advisory group under Donaldson to examine
the issue.
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