The fight between those who support embryonic stem cell research and those who oppose it is intensifying
By Robert Per New York Times
A scientific report submitted to the president states that in some cases the embryonic stem cells are far superior to the adult stem cells. Yesterday, the Republican leaders in the House of Representatives appealed to President Bush with a request that he prohibit the transfer of federal funds to research on cells taken from human embryos. They called embryonic stem cell research "the industry of death." The sharp turn was made at a time when there is a struggle within the Bush administration over the question of whether to allow research on embryonic stem cells - cells capable of differentiating into almost all types of cells in the body. Bush administration officials said the president would likely decide on the issue later this month.
Some Republicans who oppose abortion, such as Senator Orrin Hatch from Utah, and many scientists recently appealed to the President, requesting that he allocate federal budgets for stem cell research at the National Institutes of Health, at the request of the administration, stating that the research on stem cells, adult and embryonic, will in the future lead to the development of treatments for a wide variety of diseases. The report also states that in some cases embryonic stem cells are far superior to adult stem cells.
In front of the supporters of embryonic stem cell research are conservative politicians, most of the organizations opposed to abortion and the Catholic Church. According to them, the study "causes destruction. The embryos used for the study were created as part of fertilization treatments, but were not used." They are usually 5 days old, and have between 200 and 250 cells.
The opponents are led by three senior Republican congressmen - Dick Armey of Texas, Tom Delay of Texas and J.C. Watts Jr. of Oklahoma. In a moral joint statement, the administration cannot ignore the destruction of human embryos. Those who oppose abortion (Pro-Life) cannot support the industry of death, even if its goal is to find cures for diseases. It is possible to find medicines in methods that do not destroy life but support life. Such methods are becoming more promising every day."
Health policy experts in the Bush administration said that research on embryonic stem cells could lead to the development of drugs for Alzheimer's, diabetes, heart disease and vulnerability on the homepage of the National Institutes of Health, which noted that embryonic stem cells have helped
in eradicating symptoms of diabetes in mice and that a similar thing may soon be possible in humans.
But the president's political advisers worry that federal support for the study will spark opposition among conservative voters, anti-abortion groups and the Catholic Church. With Pope John Paul II on July 23 in Italy.
The Pope said last year that embryos are considered from the moment of fertilization a "form of human life" and that they should be protected as human beings are protected. It is not clear whether the meeting will result in the postponement of Bush's decision on the issue.
In a letter that Bush recently sent to an organization opposed to abortion, the president wrote that he "opposes federal funding for stem cell research that involves the destruction of live human embryos" in innovative medical research on adult stem cells.
Administration officials said that several compromise proposals on the issue are being considered. One of them would allow federal funding for research that uses stem cells already taken from embryos. But according to Mo, they are in the hands of institutions with financial interests, and it is not clear whether the government will be able to force these institutions to share the cells with other researchers.
