THE moral maze surrounding embryonic stem cell research just got more complicated.
Two new techniques published this week offer ways to create embryonic stem cells without harming any embryos that could in theory develop into babies. But no one, from opponents of embryonic stem cell (ESC) research, including representatives of the Vatican, to advisors to the Bush administration, to supporters – including scientists – has yet come to any conclusions on the techniques’ moral, political or philosophical ramifications.
ESCs could potentially be used to grow therapeutic tissues and repair damaged organs. Today almost all ESCs are harvested from early-stage human embryos called…
