In The Embryonic Stage

By Andrew Goldstein/Washington

President Bush seemed to have divided the stem-cell issue neatly last August. Stem cells, extracted from early-stage embryos, can develop into any of the body's cells and show great promise against myriad diseases. But some think this research, which kills the embryos in the process, is immoral. Bush decided to allow federal money for research on the 64 lines of stem cells that had already been developed but cut off funding for any new lines.

He did not cut off the controversy. Says Irving Weissman, a stem-cell biologist at Stanford: "I don't think anybody believes the debate is over." It only got hotter when an independent company, Advanced Cell Technology, said recently that it had cloned human embryos to produce stem cells. This so-called therapeutic cloning produces cells with the patient's own DNA, reducing problems with future organ transplants. Congress will debate the issue anew next year, when opposing bills on cloning and stem-cell related research will be presented.

In the labs, scientists fret over getting access to enough cells. The National Institutes of Health admits that just 24 of the 64 lines Bush cited are "fully characterized." Work can advance with just a dozen, but finding even that dozen has been difficult. "There are serious issues about when the cells will be practically available," says the NIH's Ron McKay. The NIH has a deal with the Wisconsin Alumni Research Foundation that gives scientists access to the stem-cell lines developed by prominent researcher James Thomson. Access to the other lines still has to be worked out. That may be why only six scientists so far have applied for federal funding. In the meantime, work on adult stem cells continues. This noncontroversial work is perhaps a decade ahead of the embryonic kind and is on the verge of real advances.

--Reported by Andrew Goldstein/Washington