IVF 'cell bank' plan criticised
Embryo stem cells have yet to be successfully used to treat disease
A US firm's controversial proposition to store stem cells from spare
IVF embryos has angered UK scientists.
In theory, cells banked from one embryo could provide treatment for a
sibling threatened by serious disease many decades later.
However, Lord Robert Winston said the scheme, unveiled at the
American Society for Reproductive Medicine conference, preyed on
parents' fears.
One stem cell expert said it was "too early" to justify storing the
embryos.
I would be horrified if anyone tried to do this in Britain
Lord Robert Winston, Hammersmith Hospital
Stem cells are the body's "master cells", capable of growing into a
wide variety of different tissues, and many scientists believe that
one day, they could be harnessed to fight diseases of old age such as
Parkinson's and Alzheimer's.
One source of these is the human embryo, and most IVF cycles produce
more embryos than can be implanted back into a woman, leaving
unwanted embryos which are normally frozen for later use or
discarded.
However, the science of stem cells is still at a fledgling stage, and
stem cells derived from an embryo have never been successfully used
to treat or cure human disease.
'Future investment'
The technique revealed at the conference involves harvesting and
developing stem cells taken from frozen embryos.
California-based firm StemLifeLine claims that embryos can
be "transformed" into individual stem cell lines which "may one day"
help create therapies.
It is like trying to run before you can walk
Professor Stephen Minger, Kings College London
"Think of our service as an investment for the future," says its
website.
However, British experts took a dim view of the scheme.
Lord Winston said: "It's a clear example of exploitation of the
worries of couples about the fate of their children.
"There is no scientific evidence to sustain the notion that this will
be a useful procedure. "I would be horrified if anyone tried to do
this in Britain."
No permission
Stem cell expert Professor Stephen Minger, from King's College
London, said that it was "too early" to be banking cells from
embryos.
"My worry is that this is a commercial service that is being promoted
to companies when the science is really not there to justify it.
"It is like trying to run before you can walk, and the fact it is
being done for commercial purposes makes it worse."
The Human Fertilisation and Embryology Authority (HFEA) regulates the
use of IVF embryos either for infertility treatment or scientific
research in the UK.
A spokesman said that it was unlikely that a similar scheme in the UK
would gain its approval.
"To get a licence, scientists must show that the creation of stem
cells in every case both a necessary and desirable use of human
embryos."
In addition, the export of frozen human embryos to other countries is
also strictly controlled by the HFEA. Some companies already offer to
store blood taken from the umbilical cord of a newborn, which is
also, to a lesser degree, a source of stem cells.
This service has also received criticism from scientists who say that
the resulting cells are of dubious value.
http://news.
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StemCells subscribers may also be interested in these sites:
Children's Neurobiological Solutions
http://www.CNSfoundation.org/
Cord Blood Registry
http://www.CordBlood.com/at.cgi?a=150123
The CNS Healing Group
http://groups.yahoo.com/group/CNS_Healing
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