They can provide an uncontroversial cure for a range of diseases ranging from Parkinson's and Alzheimer's to spinal cord injuries and even heart problems. Researchers at Wake Forest University in North Carolina and Harvard University discovered stem cells in the amniotic fluid and placenta that nourish the fetus in the womb * Congress seeks to overturn President Bush's veto on fetal stem cell research
The findings could ease some of the heated debate over ethical and political issues surrounding stem cell research because the new method does not require the killing of embryos, which some critics equate with the destruction of life.
It appears that these cells can grow for long periods of time, said Dr. Michael Kaplitt of the Presbyterian Church Hospital in New York and Cornell University. These are cells that can become different types of cells, especially cells that help cure brain diseases, pancreatic cells that may help diabetics and bone marrow cells for a variety of other diseases.
The amniotic fluid contains a large number of cells, many of which come from the developing fetus. The team of researchers, from Wake Forest University School of Medicine in North Carolina, extracted these cells from fluid samples taken as part of non-research diagnostic tests during pregnancy, then encouraged them to grow in the laboratory. They discovered that they have the potential to become a wide variety of different cells - the hallmark of stem cells. The researchers then implanted them in mice, and performed additional tests to examine how they work in living organisms. Again, the results were encouraging. The stem cells spread and began to produce essential substances for the body, both in the brain and in the liver.
Bone stem cells that were grown and then transplanted into mice also behaved in a similar way to that of normal bone cells, producing bone even after many months.
The House of Representatives supports stem cell research
The American House of Representatives this week passed a resolution backing embryonic stem cell research, thereby challenging President Bush. The embryonic stem cell law is a high priority for the Democrats who took control of Congress last week following the November elections, but Bush has already announced that he will veto any legislation that passes the House of Representatives.
According to Bush, the research will result in the destruction of human life in the name of science. The law passed by a majority of 253 to 174 but failed to obtain the two-thirds majority that would have allowed it to overcome a veto. "Today, by passing the law that allows for the expansion of stem cell research, the House of Representatives gave a voice of hope to one hundred million Americans and their families," said Speaker of the House of Representatives, Nancy Pelosi.
For a news item in New York's "Channel 10 News".
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