• In genetics and developmental biology, somatic cell nuclear transfer (SCNT) is a laboratory strategy for creating a viable embryo from a body cell and an egg cell. (wikipedia.org)
  • In human SCNT experiments, these eggs are obtained through consenting donors, utilizing ovarian stimulation. (wikipedia.org)
  • Controversy surrounds human ESC work due to the destruction of viable human embryos, leading scientists to seek alternative methods of obtaining pluripotent stem cells, SCNT is one such method. (wikipedia.org)
  • For example, if a person with Parkinson's disease donated their somatic cells, the stem cells resulting from SCNT would have genes that contribute to Parkinson's disease. (wikipedia.org)
  • Another application of SCNT stem cell research is using the patient specific stem cell lines to generate tissues or even organs for transplant into the specific patient. (wikipedia.org)
  • Only a handful of the labs in the world are currently using SCNT techniques in human stem cell research. (wikipedia.org)
  • This method is called "somatic cell nuclear transfer" or SCNT. (scienceblog.com)
  • The primary cloning technique is called "somatic cell nuclear transfer" (SCNT). (cbc-network.org)
  • Last week's newspapers carried the news of what was widely described as a significant "breakthrough" in stem cell science: the first successful human use of a technology known as Somatic Cell Nuclear Transfer (also referred to as SCNT). (intlstemcell.com)
  • I realize that I could be accused of bias because I am one of the founders of International Stem Cell, but, in fact, our company also owns license rights to some of the key intellectual property that is required to create cells through SCNT technology and our scientists are very familiar with its promise and its limitations. (intlstemcell.com)
  • Like embryonic stem cells and SCNT cells, these cells can be converted into almost any cell in the human body and thus have enormous potential for human therapy. (intlstemcell.com)
  • Unlike SCNT cells, parthenogenetic stem cells require no genetic manipulation or insertion of foreign DNA. (intlstemcell.com)
  • The cell lines that are produced from this method, unlike cell lines from embryonic stem cells or from SCNT, can potentially be matched to millions of people in the same way that an organ transplant is matched between donor and patient. (intlstemcell.com)
  • Indeed, if passed, Hatch/Feinstein/Kerry would explicitly legalize doing in humans the very cloning procedure -- somatic cell nuclear transfer (SCNT) -- that was used to make Dolly the sheep . (lifeissues.net)
  • The promise of the SCNT method is that the nucleus of a patient's skin cell, for example, could be used to create pluripotent cells that might be able to repair a part of that patient's body. (pharmaceuticalintelligence.com)
  • One attraction of SCNT has always been that the genetic identity of the new pluripotent cell would be the same as the patient's, since the transplanted nucleus carries the patient's DNA. (pharmaceuticalintelligence.com)
  • Stanford University have raised the possibility in the past that the immune system of a patient who received SCNT-derived cells might still react against the cells' mitochondria, which act as the energy factories for the cell and have their own DNA. (pharmaceuticalintelligence.com)
  • This reaction could occur because cells created through SCNT contain mitochondria from the egg donor and not from the patient, and therefore could still look like foreign tissue to the recipient's immune system. (pharmaceuticalintelligence.com)
  • When transplanted back into the nucleus donor strain, the cells were rejected although there were only two single nucleotide substitutions in the mitochondrial DNA of these SCNT-derived cells compared to that of the nucleus donor. (pharmaceuticalintelligence.com)
  • When scientists at the Oregon Health and Science University announced success in performing SCNT with human cells last year, it reignited interest in eventually using the technique for human therapies. (pharmaceuticalintelligence.com)
  • Although many stem cell researchers are focused on a different method of creating pluripotent stem cells, called induced pluripotent stem cells, there may be some applications for which SCNT-derived pluripotent cells are better suited. (pharmaceuticalintelligence.com)
  • The immunological reactions reported in the new paper will be a consideration if clinicians ever use SCNT-derived stem cells in human therapy, but such reactions should not prevent their use. (pharmaceuticalintelligence.com)
  • This research informs the medical community of the margin of safety that would be required if, in the distant future, researchers need to use SCNT to create pluripotent cells to treat someone. (pharmaceuticalintelligence.com)
  • In the United States, scientists at the Harvard Stem Cell Institute, the University of California San Francisco, the Oregon Health & Science University, Stemagen (La Jolla, CA) and possibly Advanced Cell Technology are currently researching a technique to use somatic cell nuclear transfer to produce embryonic stem cells. (wikipedia.org)
  • Somatic cell nuclear transplantation has become a focus of study in stem cell research. (wikipedia.org)
  • It is the policy of Washington state that research involving the derivation and use of human embryonic stem cells, human embryonic germ cells, and human adult stem cells from any source, including somatic cell nuclear transplantation , is permitted upon full consideration of the ethical and medical implications of this research. (cbc-network.org)
  • The technique consists of taking an denucleated oocyte (egg cell) and implanting a donor nucleus from a somatic (body) cell. (wikipedia.org)
  • The first being a female gamete, known as the ovum (egg/oocyte). (wikipedia.org)
  • Each of the 11 new human embryonic stem cell lines was created by transferring the nuclear genetic material from a non-reproductive cell of a patient into a donated egg, or "oocyte," whose nucleus had been removed. (scienceblog.com)
  • Oocyte donors and patients who donated non-reproductive cells were all unpaid volunteers. (scienceblog.com)
  • In a Science "Policy Forum" related to the team's latest findings, David Magnus and Mildred Cho from Stanford University in Palo Alto, CA discuss international oversight and ethical issues in oocyte donation, including the need to promote realistic expectations of the outcomes of stem cell research. (scienceblog.com)
  • The single cell line generated in the 2004 Science paper resulted from nuclear transfer in which the oocyte and non-reproductive ("somatic") cell came from the same healthy female. (scienceblog.com)
  • In the case of asexually creating a human, the biotechnologist removes the nucleus from a mature human egg (an oocyte). (cbc-network.org)
  • This could allow us to create cells that are useful for transplantation for a variety of diseases without the problem of immunological rejection," said Noggle in a press briefing. (the-scientist.com)
  • Peter Braude, Professor of Obstetrics and Gynaecology at Kings College London, who has also been granted HFEA licences for embryonic stem cell research in the past commented, 'This is a difficult situation because there is a strong need for eggs for research. (progress.org.uk)
  • While regarded by many top scientists as the Holy Grail of medicine, others consider embryonic stem-cell research sacrilegious. (thefutureofthings.com)
  • Experts from around the world are assessing the difficult issue of the extent to which embryonic stem cell research should be allowed to proceed, and to date there is little international consensus on this matter. (edu.au)
  • How, then, should embryonic stem cell research be regulated in Australia? (edu.au)
  • In this article we examine embryonic stem cell research and explore the current regulatory framework associated with this research in Australia, with particular reference to the Andrews Report . (edu.au)
  • These cells genetically matched the donor organism from which they came. (wikipedia.org)
  • A potential use of stem cells genetically matched to a patient would be to create cell lines that have genes linked to a patient's particular disease. (wikipedia.org)
  • The resulting cells would be genetically identical to the somatic cell donor, thus avoiding any complications from immune system rejection. (wikipedia.org)
  • The genetically modified egg now has 46 chromosomes, the full human compliment. (cbc-network.org)
  • The resulting embryo is then implanted into a surrogate mother, resulting in the birth of an animal genetically identical to the body cell donor. (geminigenetics.com)
  • The technology, should it find its way into fertility clinics, may reduce the number of donor gametes that are necessary, but it is likely to vastly increase the need for women to serve as surrogates, especially for same-sex males seeking to reproduce genetically, unless the creation of artificial wombs, currently an actively researched prospect, becomes a reality. (independentsciencenews.org)
  • The team used cells that were created by transferring the nuclei of adult mouse cells into enucleated eggs cells from genetically different mice. (pharmaceuticalintelligence.com)
  • In the future, scientists might also lessen the immune reaction by using eggs from someone who is genetically similar to the recipient, such as a mother or sister. (pharmaceuticalintelligence.com)
  • Development will ensue normally and after many mitotic divisions, the single cell forms a blastocyst (an early stage embryo with about 100 cells) with an identical genome to the original organism (i.e. a clone). (wikipedia.org)
  • The advance here is the proof that somatic cell nuclear transfer can work [in human cells] and can fully reset the donor cell genome to a pluripotent state," said Harvard Medical School's George Daley , who was not affiliated with the study. (the-scientist.com)
  • Instead of removing the egg genome prior to nuclear transfer, he and his colleagues added the somatic cell nucleus directly to the intact egg. (the-scientist.com)
  • The triploid cells aren't suitable for therapeutic purposes, and future efforts will be focused on trying to eliminate the [egg cell] genome," said Daley, who wrote an accompanying News & Views in Nature . (the-scientist.com)
  • For the first time researchers can now compare iPSC differentiation to the same process an egg goes through after the transfer of a somatic cell genome. (the-scientist.com)
  • Let's transplant the genome of species A in a cell of species B and see whether the resulting individuals will resemble species A, species B, or something else. (blogspot.com)
  • If you are correct, then the result should not look like the genome donor species A, right? (blogspot.com)
  • Somatic cell nuclear transfer typically involves the transfer of genomic information from a somatic cell into an unfertilized egg cell whose nucleus has been removed. (the-scientist.com)
  • The process of reproductive cloning involves the nucleus of a somatic (body) cell from a donor organism to be cloned being transferred into an egg cell whose nucleus (genetic material) has been removed. (geminigenetics.com)
  • The DNA within the skin sample is cultured and inserted into a donor egg cell whose nucleus (genetic material) has been removed. (geminigenetics.com)
  • The egg is now viable and capable of producing an adult organism containing all necessary genetic information from just one parent. (wikipedia.org)
  • These cells are deemed to have a pluripotent potential because they have the ability to give rise to all of the tissues found in an adult organism. (wikipedia.org)
  • XI - embryonic stem cells: embryonic cells that are capable of modifying the cells of any organism tissue. (hinxtongroup.org)
  • … "embryo" means a human organism during the first 56 days of its development following fertilization or creation, excluding any time during which its development has been suspended, and includes any cell derived from such an organism that is used for the purpose of creating a human being. (hinxtongroup.org)
  • At the top of the list comes the zygote-a fertilized egg, which of course has the ability to divide and differentiate into all cell types in the body and create a new organism. (thefutureofthings.com)
  • The first three divisions of the zygote give birth to eight totipotent cells, each of which also has the ability to become an entire organism. (thefutureofthings.com)
  • A new organism is created by asexual reproduction using a duplicate of a single cell from the parent organism. (geminigenetics.com)
  • In humans, somatic transfer has been less fruitful-the egg cell quits dividing and often dies after nuclear transfer. (the-scientist.com)
  • The work also moves scientists one step closer to the goal of transplanting healthy cells into humans to replace cells damaged by diseases such as Parkinson's and diabetes. (scienceblog.com)
  • In rodents, and even in some preliminary trials in humans, human embryonic stem cells have been shown to bridge gaps in spinal cord injuries , allowing restoration of motor functions. (thefutureofthings.com)
  • Stem cell technology in humans derives from earlier and complementary work in animal studies. (edu.au)
  • The process of somatic cell nuclear transfer involves two different cells. (wikipedia.org)
  • Currently, the procedure for isolating non-reproductive cells for the nuclear transfer method involves animal enzymes and serum. (scienceblog.com)
  • Therapeutic cloning involves the creation of an early-stage embryo (blastocyst) and the removal of stem cells from the developing embryo. (geminigenetics.com)
  • One method of creating pluripotent stem cells is called somatic cell nuclear transfer, and involves taking the nucleus of an adult cell and injecting it into an egg cell from which the nucleus has been removed. (pharmaceuticalintelligence.com)
  • The ovum, now containing the somatic cell's nucleus, is stimulated with a shock and will begin to divide. (wikipedia.org)
  • Since, as described above, the composition of the cell's interior and the activity of many of its proteins depend on more than just the genes, the portion of the genes' information content that is actually used by the cell is determined, in part, by non-genetic factors. (blogspot.com)
  • Mouse cells and tissues created through nuclear transfer can be rejected by the body because of a previously unknown immune response to the cell's mitochondria, according to an international study in mice by researchers at the Stanford University, MIT and colleagues in Germany and England. (pharmaceuticalintelligence.com)
  • Stem cells can then be obtained by the destruction of this clone embryo for use in therapeutic cloning or in the case of reproductive cloning the clone embryo is implanted into a host mother for further development and brought to term. (wikipedia.org)
  • The aim of carrying out this procedure is to obtain pluripotent cells from a cloned embryo. (wikipedia.org)
  • Embryonic stem cells are undifferentiated cells of an embryo. (wikipedia.org)
  • The fusion ultimately gives rise to a microscopic embryo, from which embryonic stem cells can theoretically be derived. (the-scientist.com)
  • In the best case, an early embryo consisting of a few cells may form, but these are not capable of giving rise to human life, nor hESCs for therapeutic purposes. (the-scientist.com)
  • The resulting clone developed into a microscopic embryo, which survived long enough for pluripotent stem cell lines to be derived. (the-scientist.com)
  • Hwang and colleagues report that the cells are chromosomally normal, self-renewing and "pluripotent" - meaning they have the ability to form the three major types of cells in the early embryo that give rise to all other cells in the body. (scienceblog.com)
  • It is also our view that there are no sound reasons for treating the early-stage human embryo or cloned human embryo as anything special, or as having moral status greater than human somatic cells in tissue culture. (wikiquote.org)
  • The early mammalian embryo consists of the extra-embryonic cell layers-the trophoblast and a body of cells called the inner cell mass (ICM), which eventually become the embryo proper. (thefutureofthings.com)
  • An electrical impulse is then applied to the egg cell to stimulate it to become an embryo. (geminigenetics.com)
  • Dec. 29, 2005 -- South Korean laboratories used by scientist Hwang Woo Suk no longer have any stem cells created from patients' tissues, the result of the researcher's landmark May 2005 paper, the Seoul National University said. (blogspot.com)
  • In addition to their ability to supply cells at the turnover rate of their respective tissues, they can be stimulated to repair injured tissue caused by liver damage, skin abrasions and blood loss. (thefutureofthings.com)
  • The ability of our body to regenerate some of its tissues is largely owed to the reserves of adult stem cells. (thefutureofthings.com)
  • Numerous biological components, including genes, cells, tissues, and even complete creatures like sheep, have been cloned by researchers, and now cat, dog and equine cloning is widely and reliably available via international companies such as our partner, ViaGen Pets & Equine. (geminigenetics.com)
  • Blastocytes obtained through nuclear transfers would be used to generate the embryonic stem cells that could be differentiated to specific tissues or organs for transfer to the nuclear donor. (spiked-online.com)
  • Stem cells may be derived from adult tissues but the most potent are extracted from developing human embryos. (edu.au)
  • The hope has been that this would eliminate the problem of the patient's immune system attacking the pluripotent cells as foreign tissue, which is a problem with most organs and tissues when they are transplanted from one patient to another. (pharmaceuticalintelligence.com)
  • As a result, International Stem Cell will benefit from the development of either technology, but it is important that the public and the scientific community be fully aware of all alternatives in the field of regenerative medicine, not just the ones that capture public imagination at any particular time. (intlstemcell.com)
  • Therapeutic cloning refers to the production of embryonic stem cells for medicinal reasons, for example regenerative medicine and tissue replacement. (geminigenetics.com)
  • The genetic material of the donor egg cell is removed and discarded, leaving it 'deprogrammed. (wikipedia.org)
  • The findings validate this controversial method, and may one day allow therapeutic stem cells to be created from a patient's own genetic material. (the-scientist.com)
  • From the 185 donated oocytes, endowed with the genetic material from a different person (or in one case, the same person), the researchers report development of 31 hollow balls of cells called "human nuclear-transfer blastocysts. (scienceblog.com)
  • Lytic cycle - the replication process in viruses in which the virus's genetic material uses the copying machinery of the host cell to make new viruses. (edrawmind.com)
  • Replication - the fundamental process of all cells, in which the genetic material is copied before the cell reproduces. (edrawmind.com)
  • When a fertilised egg separates into two or more embryos with almost identical DNA, these twins are created. (geminigenetics.com)
  • The surrogate mum carries the cloned pet for the gestation period and once ready, gives birth to the clone who will be an identical genetic twin to the original pet whose skin sample was used to make the nucleus of the donor egg cell. (geminigenetics.com)
  • Molecular tests of artificially differentiated cells invariably show them to be not identical to their natural counterparts (also see below). (independentsciencenews.org)
  • however, there are also stem cells in the adult body. (thefutureofthings.com)
  • These adult stem cells are considered multipotent, having the ability to differentiate into different cell types, albeit with a more limited repertoire than embryonic stem cells. (thefutureofthings.com)
  • Adult stem cells can be used to accelerate bone or tendon healing , and they can induce cartilage progenitor cells to produce a better matrix and repair cartilage damage . (thefutureofthings.com)
  • Adult stem cells can be used to replace damaged heart-muscle cells and are used in practice today . (thefutureofthings.com)
  • The most common application of adult stem cells is probably the restoration of blood cells for patients with leukemia, and there are many more applications currently in practice. (thefutureofthings.com)
  • The experimental process begins with "somatic" or body cells, e.g., from adult blood or skin. (independentsciencenews.org)
  • This raises the possibility, for example, that the existing data will overstate the potential risks for healthy donors, given that IVF patients may be more likely to have a variety of conditions, such as pelvic adhesions and polycystic ovary syndrome, that increase the odds of complications from the ovarian stimulation or the retrieval surgery. (nationalacademies.org)
  • But the pool of research donors is likely to be significantly broader than just Caucasian women in middle to upper socioeconomic groups, and it is difficult to infer just what potential risks these research donors may face when the only available data are from a collection of women who differ from them in age, race, and socioeconomic status. (nationalacademies.org)
  • This decline is good news, of course, but it adds to the uncertainty about exactly what potential risks egg donors face now. (nationalacademies.org)
  • There are some risks involved in removing eggs, whether used in IVF or for research purposes, including ovarian hyper-stimulation syndrome. (progress.org.uk)
  • [5] Proponents of IVG, acknowledging the health risks and discomfort associated with egg extraction, count as a benefit the expected reduced demand for women's eggs. (independentsciencenews.org)
  • They fail to note, however, that for many decades the fertility industry has ignored calls for it to include health warnings on advertisements seeking young women to supply eggs and to investigate the long-term health risks for egg donors by establishing a national health registry. (independentsciencenews.org)
  • A couple of studies show some success in generating early microscopic embryos, but this [study] is the first successful pluripotent stem cell line," said Daley. (the-scientist.com)
  • A renewable, tissue culture source of human cells capable of differentiating into a wide variety of cell types would have broad applications in basic research and therapeutic techniques. (spiked-online.com)
  • No donor is every subjected to any additional physical risk beyond what she has already agreed to as part of the IVF procedure in which she elected to participate. (intlstemcell.com)
  • The ICM continues to differentiate into three germ layers-ectoderm, mesoderm and endoderm, each of which follows a specific developmental destiny that takes them along an ever-specifying path at which end the daughter cells will make up the different organs of the human body. (thefutureofthings.com)
  • this approach has been championed as an answer to the many issues concerning embryonic stem cells (ESCs) and the destruction of viable embryos for medical use, though questions remain on how homologous the two cell types truly are. (wikipedia.org)
  • This could help researchers identify abnormalities in iPSC differentiation, correct them, and develop pluripotent stem cells that don't harbor tumorigenic qualities and do not require the use of human embryos. (the-scientist.com)
  • Moreover, most early-stage embryos that are produced naturally (that is, through the union of egg and sperm resulting from sexual intercourse) fail to implant and are therefore wasted or destroyed. (wikiquote.org)
  • The eggs will then be used by scientists from Newcastle and Durham Universities to create embryos from which they will attempt to derive stem cells . (progress.org.uk)
  • Embryonic stem cells are derived from early embryos and have the ability to differentiate into any cell type. (spiked-online.com)
  • The second being a somatic cell, referring to the cells of the human body. (wikipedia.org)
  • Such cells may help lower the risk of the body rejecting such cells when applied therapeutically. (the-scientist.com)
  • However, if we think back to what actually happened to the animal - it died, even if from the cold, the cells in the body would have taken some time to freeze. (wikiquote.org)
  • The nucleus of a body cell from the DNA donor is removed, and put into the place formerly occupied by the egg's nucleus. (cbc-network.org)
  • The cells of the ICM are no longer omnipotent, because they no longer share the fate of the trophoblast, and they have committed themselves to an embryonic fate with the ability to become any cell in the body (but not the trophoblast). (thefutureofthings.com)
  • a type of biological diversity that is exhibited in the variety of structural forms in living things, from internal cell structure to body morphology. (edrawmind.com)
  • The objective is to turn ordinary body cells of prospective parents into artificial eggs and sperm. (independentsciencenews.org)
  • The iPSCs are next exposed to other biomolecules or drugs, to convert them into cells resembling the specialized cells of the body, such as eggs or sperm. (independentsciencenews.org)
  • The greatest hope rests on the potential of pluripotent stem cells, which can become nearly any kind of cell in the body. (pharmaceuticalintelligence.com)
  • The first is that great old standard, "sexual" reproduction, in which sperm meets egg. (cbc-network.org)
  • Research on the manufacture of egg-like and sperm-like cells for the purpose of producing laboratory-crafted human children is proceeding rapidly. (independentsciencenews.org)
  • Though ostensibly developed to facilitate reproduction in individuals for whom this capability is impaired or unavailable, the use of laboratory produced eggs and sperm represent an opening for the routine production and commercialization of "designer babies. (independentsciencenews.org)
  • Researchers refer to creating eggs and sperm (gametes) in the laboratory as in vitro gametogenesis or IVG. (independentsciencenews.org)
  • Promoters suggest that IVG would make it possible for medically infertile people to have biologically related children without seeking authentic eggs or sperm from a donor. (independentsciencenews.org)
  • [3] The technology would also make it possible for a fertile person wanting to become a single parent of a biologically related child to do so without gametes (egg or sperm) donated by an identifiable second person (solo IVG). (independentsciencenews.org)
  • that is, a person from whom both synthetic eggs and sperm are derived. (independentsciencenews.org)
  • In addition, researchers must develop methods to efficiently direct the differentiation of embryonic stem cells to specific stable cell types. (scienceblog.com)
  • The term stem cell can be defined by two very important qualities: the cell has the ability to self-renew and, in a more general sense, the cell has not completed differentiation into its final state. (thefutureofthings.com)
  • This general definition includes a wide variety of cells with varying degrees of differentiation potential. (thefutureofthings.com)
  • The exact process of differentiation is not yet understood and although embryonic stem cells can, in principle, provide for all human tissue, scientists are some way from controlling the process. (spiked-online.com)
  • I am talking about human stem cells derived from a process called, "Parthenogenesis", developed and first announced in 2007 by a company called International Stem Cell Corporation, whose discoveries were first published in the peer reviewed journal, Cloning and Stem Cells, edited by the scientist who first created "Dolly", the first cloned animal. (intlstemcell.com)
  • Claims that you could clone individual treatments of human beings to treat common diseases like diabetes, suggests you need a huge supply of human eggs. (wikiquote.org)
  • While stem-cell research holds enormous potential for treating or even curing some diseases, the cloning of a human being is morally and ethically unacceptable…Any attempt to clone a human being is in direct conflict with the public policies of this state. (cbc-network.org)
  • HumanPass Wednesday confirmed fingerprinting traces of Snuppy, Hwang's canine clone, matched those of its somatic cell donor, an Afghan hound named Tai, while they demonstrated disparate mitochondrial genotypes. (blogspot.com)
  • One of the next preclinical steps, according to the authors, is to evaluate, in the lab, differentiated patient-specific human embryonic stem cell lines for immune-system tolerance, therapeutic efficacy and safety. (scienceblog.com)
  • There was a thought that because the mitochondria were on the inside of the cell, they would not be exposed to the host's immune system. (pharmaceuticalintelligence.com)
  • For one thing, Dr. Giudice pointed out, the available data come primarily from IVF patients and not from healthy subjects, yet it is healthy women and not those coping with infertility who will be donating eggs for research. (nationalacademies.org)
  • Discussing the planned public consultation Angela McNab, chief executive of the HFEA, said, 'We know there are a wide variety of views on the subject of donating eggs for research and we anticipate a strong response to the consultation from professional groups, scientists, clinicians and patients as well as the public. (progress.org.uk)
  • The first pluripotent human embryonic stem cells (hESCs) have been generated from somatic cell nuclear transfer, according to a study published today (October 5) in Nature . (the-scientist.com)
  • Understanding human [eggs'] ability to reprogram could shed light on improved methods for reprograming," said Noggle. (the-scientist.com)
  • Scientists have isolated the first human embryonic stem cell lines specifically tailored to match the nuclear DNA of patients, both males and females of various ages, suffering from disease or spinal cord injury. (scienceblog.com)
  • These cell lines will enable the study of human disease in cells in the laboratory. (scienceblog.com)
  • The Korean researchers who performed this stem cell research improved upon their protocols that yielded the first embryonic stem cell line from a cloned human blastocyst. (scienceblog.com)
  • Even if you don't have a religious view of the sanctity of life, you have to ask is there going to be a massive trade in human eggs from poor women to rich countries. (wikiquote.org)
  • The bill purports to promote stem-cell research, while outlawing the cloning of a human being. (cbc-network.org)
  • A controversial scheme to extend the practise of 'egg sharing' has been approved by the UK's Human Fertilisation and Embryology Authority (HFEA) to provide greater numbers of eggs for embryonic stem (ES) cell research. (progress.org.uk)
  • The technology known as "Parthenogenesis" begins with human eggs that are created and used every day throughout the world for in-vitro fertilization (IVF). (intlstemcell.com)
  • Unlike embryonic stem cells, the human eggs used to create parthenogenetic stem cells are never fertilized and cannot become a human being. (intlstemcell.com)
  • Protocols are approved by Independent Review Boards (IRBs) to protect the safety of donors and by an independent Stem Cell Research Oversight (SCRO) committee to insure compliance with state laws and research ethics, regulations established by the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) and the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) Office for Human Research Protections, in addition to state-level requirements. (intlstemcell.com)
  • It's given name is the "Human Cloning Ban and Stem Cell Research Protection Act of 2003," the stated purpose of which, supposedly, is to "prohibit human cloning and to protect important areas of medical research, including stem cell research. (lifeissues.net)
  • In his original report, Thompson demonstrated that human embryonic stem cells could be coaxed into developing gut-like structures, bone, cartilage and muscle (1). (spiked-online.com)
  • Current screening of potential new drugs is done using cell lines derived from animals or 'abnormal' human tissue such as tumor cells. (spiked-online.com)
  • Human nuclear cell transfer is legal in the UK, but is liable to become a criminal act in the USA pending an upcoming vote in the Senate. (spiked-online.com)
  • It is likely that human stem cells will have similar properties. (spiked-online.com)
  • Should the use of nuclear transfer ever become widespread there will be an urgent need for human egg donors and it is unlikely that the willing population will be sufficient to meet demand. (spiked-online.com)
  • Alternatively, research using eggs may point the way to methods which mimic their properties using other human cells and chemical agents. (spiked-online.com)
  • The unique properties of human stem cells have aroused considerable optimism about their potential as new pathways for alleviating human suffering caused by disease and injury. (edu.au)
  • This issue was considered by the House of Representatives Standing Committee on Legal and Constitutional Affairs in its report entitled Human Cloning: Scientific, Ethical and Regulatory Aspects of Human Cloning and Stem Cell Research (hereafter the Andrews Report , after the Chair of the Committee, Mr Kevin Andrews, MP) released in September 2001. (edu.au)
  • After the somatic cell transfers, the cytoplasmic factors affect the nucleus to become a zygote. (wikipedia.org)
  • Before the technique will ever make it to the clinic, however, researchers must find a way to remove genomic material from the egg cell. (the-scientist.com)
  • While women have always been paid for donating their eggs for in vitro fertilization, ethical guidelines have prevented researchers from paying women for their eggs. (the-scientist.com)
  • As most women will not donate altruistically, this has left researchers working with the poor-quality eggs rejected from in vitro fertilization. (the-scientist.com)
  • Before patient-specific stem cells can potentially be used in the clinic, a variety of issues must be addressed, the researchers emphasized. (scienceblog.com)
  • The researchers generated these stem cell lines ten times more efficiently than in their 2004 Science study, using improved laboratory methods. (scienceblog.com)
  • From the 31 nuclear-transfer blastocysts, the scientists derived 11 stem cell lines. (scienceblog.com)
  • Treatment at the Newcastle NHS Fertility Centre, which will offer the scheme, usually costs £3,500, if a woman agrees to surrender half of her derived eggs to scientists the fee will be halved. (progress.org.uk)
  • Until now scientists have been restricted to using 'left-over' eggs from IVF treatment, these are usually poor quality and are already older than those that will be donated through the new scheme. (progress.org.uk)
  • A number of large biotech companies and scientists are looking toward stem cells as the basis for a therapeutic solution to cure such illnesses as blindness, diabetes and spinal cord injuries. (thefutureofthings.com)
  • Scientists anticipate that in the future stem cell lines will provide a virtually unending supply of pancreatic cells for diabetic patients, neuronal cells for patients with neural disorders such as Parkinson's or Alzheimer's disease, and a host of heart cells that may treat a variety of cardiac problems. (spiked-online.com)
  • It might be expected that the richest nation on Earth would encourage its top scientists to pursue this work with vigor rather than limiting funding opportunities, creating legal barriers and fencing off any newly developed cell lines. (spiked-online.com)
  • While iPSCs avoid the ethical issues surrounding embryonic stem cells, the methods used to derive them sometimes induce mutations in cancer causing genes, making them unsuitable for therapeutic purposes. (the-scientist.com)
  • So the population of molecules inside the cell can vary extensively even if the genes do not. (blogspot.com)
  • For example, the stem cells can differentiate into cells that display characteristics of skin and retina cells, muscle cell bundles, bone matrix cells and cells of the gastrointestinal and respiratory lining. (scienceblog.com)
  • As the embryonic cells divide and the daughter cells differentiate, they become increasingly specific. (thefutureofthings.com)
  • A particular field encouraged by the foundation is stem-cell research, with the great hope that it will result in the ability to get cells to differentiate into neurons and support cells to bridge the gap of a spinal cord injury. (thefutureofthings.com)
  • In their new paper, Science author Woo Suk Hwang from Seoul National University in Seoul, Korea and colleagues replaced the nuclei from donated oocytes with nuclei from skin cells from male and female patients, ranging in age from 2 to 56, who had spinal cord injuries, juvenile diabetes and the genetic disease "congenital hypogamma-globulinemia. (scienceblog.com)
  • however, the donor was a spinal cord patient. (scienceblog.com)
  • In fact, by some estimates, as few as 100 parthenogenetic stem cell lines could provide immune-matched cells to over 50 percent of the world's population, and could accelerate disease therapies and treatments for severe chronic conditions, including diabetes, spinal cord injuries, liver diseases, blinding diseases such as macular degeneration, and neural diseases such as Parkinson's and Alzheimer's. (intlstemcell.com)
  • Here, the stem cell line is created using the genetic properties of the prospective recipient via somatic cell nuclear transfer. (spiked-online.com)
  • To achieve this success, Scott Noggle at the New York Stem Cell Foundation Laboratory took a unique approach to the process. (the-scientist.com)
  • In laboratory culture, these cell lines displayed signs of immunological compatibility with the patients' cells, Science authors reported. (scienceblog.com)
  • Other improvements over the last paper include the reduced use of animal products in laboratory procedures and better evidence that the cell lines matched the patients' cells and did not have a parthenogenetic origin, where unfertilized eggs can divide on their own. (scienceblog.com)
  • Dr Thomas Okarma, who heads up the Geron Corporation, claims to have heart cells that 'beat' in laboratory dishes developed from stem cells (2). (spiked-online.com)
  • Given that we have an efficiency of 1% cloning for livestock species and if only one in a thousand cells are viable then around 100,000 cells would need to be transferred. (wikiquote.org)
  • Bacterium (plural bacteria) - an individual prokaryotic cell or a single species that is in the domain. (edrawmind.com)
  • As part of the study, Noggle and his colleagues developed new protocols that allow women to choose between giving their eggs to research or in vitro fertilization programs. (the-scientist.com)
  • It is possible, with informed consent from the IVF patient, to hold back some unfertilized eggs for creation of parthenogenetic stem cells, all at no additional risk to the donor. (intlstemcell.com)
  • The HFEA has also announced a public consultation, to run from September until November, to assess the opinion of the British public on the ethical status of egg donation for research. (progress.org.uk)
  • Stem cells are at the forefront of medical research and incite some of the most controversial ethical and religious debates worldwide. (thefutureofthings.com)
  • The ethical and legal controversies that were aroused in the ART debates during the 1980s have been re-ignited with the development of stem cell technology. (edu.au)
  • According to the researcher's new protocols, women are paid to donate, but only later choose whether their eggs should go to research or in vitro fertilization. (the-scientist.com)
  • The stem cells in storage at Hwang's laboratories at the university were all derived from the fertility clinic MizMedi's blastocysts, which were generated by in vitro fertilization . (blogspot.com)
  • Not only might stem cell technology obviate the need for cadaver donation - it could also resolve the problem of rejection. (spiked-online.com)
  • What is not generally known is that the IVF process can often result in the creation of far more unfertilized eggs than will ever be needed for fertility purposes. (intlstemcell.com)
  • In fact, all egg donors voluntarily participate through a very transparent, peer-reviewed, and medically supervised process. (intlstemcell.com)
  • Somatic cell nuclear transfer is a technique for cloning in which the nucleus of a somatic cell is transferred to the cytoplasm of an enucleated egg. (wikipedia.org)
  • Cloning in biotechnology refers to processes used to create copies of DNA fragments ( molecular cloning ), cells (cell cloning), or organisms . (wikiquote.org)
  • Stem cell technology is the latest development in this controversial branch of science. (edu.au)
  • Embryonic stem cell technology is still at a preliminary research stage and announcements about its potential may be premature. (edu.au)
  • This gives them the ability to create patient specific pluripotent cells, which could then be used in therapies or disease research. (wikipedia.org)
  • This is the first time the system has been approved in order to derive eggs for research. (progress.org.uk)
  • It is hoped that one donor per week will be recruited and that each new recruit will donate six to ten eggs for the research. (progress.org.uk)
  • Dr Calum MacKellar, director of research at the SCHB, added, 'This kind of agreement by women to donate their eggs for research will generally exploit the poorest members of our society. (progress.org.uk)
  • Professor Alison Murdoch who leads the Newcastle team said, 'It is of paramount importance to ensure that all donors are not recruited to participate in this research against their best interest by coercion or excessive financial inducement. (progress.org.uk)
  • However, this license surprises me as it is inconsistent with the stance of not paying for eggs for research. (progress.org.uk)
  • Snuppy was cast under suspicion following revelations that the Korean scientist had fabricated his stem cell research. (blogspot.com)
  • It brightens the prospects that his team retains the source technologies for stem cell research," Park said. (blogspot.com)
  • ``The patient-matching stem cells no longer exist,'' Roe Jung Hye, dean of research of affairs at the university, said in an e-mailed statement. (blogspot.com)
  • The university has been conducting a probe on Hwang and his research since Dec. 16, including genetic tests on stem cells being stored at the laboratories. (blogspot.com)
  • Recent advances in the field of stem-cell research are giving hope to millions. (thefutureofthings.com)
  • and altering cell and tissue characteristics for biomedical research and manufacturing. (nationalacademies.org)