Stem Cell Research
This article was originally published in RAJ Devices
Executive Summary
Australia issues its first cloned human embryo licences
Australia issues its first cloned human embryo licences
Australia's National Health and Medical Research Council has issued the country's first licences allowing the creation of cloned human embryos1. The council's embryo research licensing committee issued three licences to Sydney IVF to create the embryos for the derivation of human embryonic stem cell lines.
The licences were granted on 16 September for research including reproducible production of human embryonic stem cell lines from human cumulus cells and human fibroblasts.
The research will be conducted using somatic cell nuclear transfer. It aims to derive stem cells from human embryo clones, and, if successful, the technique could be used for the generation of disease-specific and person-specific human embryonic stem cell (hESC) lines, the NHMRC said. The availability of the hESC lines could also contribute to the study of human diseases, as well as help develop compounds to prevent or reverse the progression of disease; they could also eventually be used for cellular therapies.
The derivation of stem cells from cloned human embryos has not yet been achieved in Australia. The research will be restricted by national legislation, including the Research Involving Human Embryos Act 2002 and the Prohibition of Human Cloning for Reproduction Act 2002, which prohibits human cloning for reproductive purposes, hybrid embryos and commercial trading in human embryos.
References
1. NHMRC press release, 16 September 2008, www.nhmrc.gov.au/media/noticeboard/notice08/scnt.htm