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The science and ethics of making part‐human animals in stem cell biology
Author(s) -
Robert Jason Scott
Publication year - 2006
Publication title -
the faseb journal
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Journals
SCImago Journal Rank - 1.709
H-Index - 277
eISSN - 1530-6860
pISSN - 0892-6638
DOI - 10.1096/fj.05-4286lsf
Subject(s) - embryonic stem cell , engineering ethics , stem cell , research ethics , environmental ethics , political science , biology , microbiology and biotechnology , genetics , philosophy , gene , engineering
The National Academy of Sciences recently issued voluntary guidelines to govern human embryonic stem cell research. Among other restrictions, these guidelines prohibit certain kinds of combinations of human and nonhuman animal cells, and call for ethics review and oversight of any protocol involving the transfer of human embryonic stem cells into nonhuman animals. In this essay, I discuss the history of and scientific rationales for combining human cells with cells of nonhuman animals, and critically assess the most recent attempts to limit such research on moral grounds—and find them lacking. Nonetheless, as I show, this research remains scientifically and morally contested. I then explore whether and how the NAS's recommended Embryonic Stem Cell Research and Oversight committees will allow for scientifically well‐informed moral assessment of this controversial, but possibly important, research.—Robert, J. S. The science and ethics of making part‐human animals in stem cell biology. FASEB J. 20, 838–845 (2006)