Stem Cell News

From the Boston Globe:

Harvard scientists advance cell work
Technique doesn't destroy embryos
By Gareth Cook and Carey Goldberg, Boston Globe Staff
August 22, 2005

"Harvard scientists have created cells similar to human embryonic
stem cells without destroying embryos, a major step toward someday
possibly defusing the central objection to stem cell research."

. . .

The Harvard researchers cautioned that the fusion technique,
described in this week's issue of the journal Science, is
inefficient and deeply flawed at this point, and emphasized that it
should not deter embryonic stem-cell research that involves embryos,
nor diminish support for such research.

''Our technology is not ready for prime-time yet," said Kevin Eggan,
the paper's senior author and an assistant professor at
Harvard. ''Our results do not offer an alternative now."

. . .

But for now, gigantic obstacles remain. The most crucial flaw in the
fused cell was that it contained twice the genetic material that
cells usually carry, and there is no known way to return it to
normal. Such cells would be extremely risky to use for therapies in
humans, though they could be valuable for research.