Dead Baby Parts Have NEVER Cured Disease: Congress

While Planned Parenthood insists that their baby-killing business furthers medical science, the Congressional Select Investigative Panel on Infant Lives of the House Energy and Commerce Committee has found no such benefits.

“Fetal tissue has been used in biomedical research for over 90 years. In this time, not a single medical cure has resulted from this research.”
-- Rep. Marsha Blackburn (R-TN)

UPDATE 8/27/16: Congressional Panel Finds Criminality — High Schoolers Dissected Aborted Baby Brains

For background, read Planned Parenthood Sells Aborted Baby Parts for Research

Also read Stem Cell Breakthrough: Embryos Needn't Be Killed

-- From "Congressional Report: ‘Fetal Tissue Has Not Been Directly Linked to a Single Medical Cure’" by Jeannette Richard, CNSNews.com 7/19/16

“While it is commonly claimed that fetal tissue was used to produce the polio vaccine, this is largely false. The polio vaccine was developed by Jonas Salk in 1955 using a monkey cell line, and is still produced using monkey cells.

“Some might object that while fetal tissue research has not directly resulted in medical cures, it has helped advance the overall body of scientific knowledge and thereby assisted in producing cures. It is impossible to determine whether this claim is true, and if so to what extent. Yet the fact is that no one can point to a single medical advancement that critically depended on the use of fetal tissue.”

“In fact, vaccines against eight diseases (Rabies, Diphtheria, Typhoid, Cholera, Plague, Tetanus, Pertussis and Bacille-Calmette-Guerin disease) were all developed in the 1800s and early 1900s, well before the first use of fetal tissue in research,” according to the report.

The panel examined the Food and Drug Administration’s (FDA) list of approved vaccines which prevent 26 different diseases, and found only three (Varicella, Hepatitis A, and Zoster) for which vaccines were developed using fetal tissue. However, these vaccines rely on fetal cell lines only for “economic, not scientific reasons,” the panel reported.

To read the entire article above, CLICK HERE.

From "How fetal tissue is used in medical research" by The Week Staff 10/24/15

How do scientists use fetal tissue?

It's used to find potential treatments for a wide range of common diseases and afflictions, including cancer, diabetes, birth defects, HIV, multiple sclerosis, ALS, and Alzheimer's. Unlike adult tissue cells, fetal tissue cells can be manipulated into almost any kind of tissue, are less likely to be rejected by a host, and have the capacity to replicate rapidly — making them perfect for analysis into how diseases work. They are also being tried as actual treatments for Parkinson's disease, spinal cord injuries, and diabetes, with researchers injecting fetal cells directly into organs in hopes of regenerating them. Fetal tissue was also a vital component in the development of vaccines for polio, chicken pox, rubella, and shingles. The polio vaccine alone saves 550,000 lives a year. Alta Charo, a bioethicist at the University of Wisconsin at Madison, says fetal tissue research has benefited "virtually every person in this country."

To read the entire article above, CLICK HERE.

From "The Transfer of Fetal Tissue and Related Matters" a report to Select Investigative Panel of the U. S. House of Representatives 7/14/16

Fetal Cell Research is Outdated Technology - Beginning in the 1930s, viruses were propagated using fetal tissue and some laboratories continued to this method until the 1970s. During that time, scientists did not yet know how to work with more mature human cells, and fetal tissue was easier to grow in the laboratory. Science has now advanced beyond these earlier approaches. In short, human fetal tissue is outdated technology that is not necessary for modern vaccine research. For example, current vaccine research for HIV/AIDS, Cancer, Malaria and Ebola does not rely on fetal tissue.

Fetal Tissue is not Mainstream Science - In 2014, the most recent year for which data is available,200 NIH funded a total of 76,081 research grants, only 160 of which (less than 1%) involved the use of human fetal tissue. In contrast, in the same year, NIH funded 1,136 grants using adult stem cells. The fact that fetal research is such a tiny fraction of all scientific research calls into serious question the claim that fetal research is vital and that science will not advance without it. In reality, use of human fetal tissue is increasingly an outdated and unnecessary scientific technology, used only by a handful of scientists.

To read the entire report above, CLICK HERE.

Also read Mutant Human-pigs Created for Organs in U.S.

Mutant Human-pigs Created for Organs in U.S.

American researchers are using human stem cells and modified pig embryos to create a new life form dubbed "chimera" in order to cultivate a variety of human organs suitable for subsequent transplantation to humans.

“Our hope is that this pig embryo will develop normally but the pancreas will be made almost exclusively out of human cells and could be compatible for transplantation.”
-- Pablo J. Ross, Ph.D. Assistant Professor, University of California, Davis

“The organ would be an exact genetic copy of your liver but a much younger and healthier version . . .  With every organ we will look at what's happening in the [pig's] brain and if we find that it's too human like, then we won't let those foetuses be born.”
-- Walter Low, Department of Neurosurgery, University of Minnesota

“Chimeras will be seen to be what they are which is a saviour, given that they will provide, life-saving, sustaining organs for our patients.”
-- Scott Fahrenkrug, Recombinetics (a Minnesota-based company)

For background, read U.S. Government Creates 'Humanized Mice' via Abortion to Advance Gay Agenda

Click headlines below to read previous articles:

Human 'Lab Rats' Tortured for Weeks, Then Killed

Creation of Synthetic Humans Planned at Secret Harvard Meeting

UK Government OKs Frankenstein Designer Babies

Genetic Scientists Worshiped as Creators of Life

Government Wants 'Defective Babies' to Harvest Organs

Also read Implanting Harvested Aborted Organs in Animals for Human Transplant

-- From "Scientists growing human pancreas inside 'mutant' pig in bid to solve transplant shortage" by Patrick Gysin, The Sun 6/5/16

The chimera embryos have been implanted in living sows and allowed to grow for 28 days before being tested and destroyed.

Pigs are thought to be an ideal biological incubator for growing human organs and could potentially be used to create hearts, livers, kidneys, lungs and corneas.

Critics say the experiment is “offensive to human dignity”.

To read the entire article above, CLICK HERE.

From "US bid to grow human organs for transplant inside pigs" by Fergus Walsh, Medical Correspondent, BBC News 6/5/16

The team from University of California, Davis says they should look and behave like normal pigs except that one organ will be composed of human cells.

Creating the chimeric embryos takes two stages. First, a technique known as CRISPR gene editing is used to remove DNA from a newly fertilised pig embryo that would enable the resulting foetus to grow a pancreas.

This creates a genetic "niche" or void. Then, human induced pluripotent (iPS) stem cells are injected into the embryo. The iPS cells were derived from adult cells and "dialled back" to become stem cells capable of developing into any tissue in the body.

But the work is controversial. . . . The main concern is that the human cells might migrate to the developing pig's brain and make it, in some way, more human.

To read the entire article above, CLICK HERE.

From "Scientists attempting to harvest human organs in pigs create human-pig embryo" by Nicola Davis and Kevin Rawlinson, UK Guardian 6/6/16

It was reported earlier this year that scientists had begun attempts to create the embryos, but there has been opposition from authorities. In September last year, the US National Institutes of Health said it would not back research into “chimeras” until it knew more about the implications.

Concerns have been raised about whether the transplantation of an organ from an animal into a human could risk introducing animal viruses into a patient. Researchers from Harvard Medical School, however, revealed last year that it was possible to use gene-editing technology to inactivate more than 60 retrovirus genes in pigs in a step towards such organ transplantation.

Prof George Church, who has led similar research into the possible use of chimeras, [said] “It opens up the possibility of not just transplantation from pigs to humans but the whole idea that a pig organ is perfectible.

“Gene editing could ensure the organs are very clean, available on demand and healthy, so they could be superior to human donor organs.”

To read the entire article above, CLICK HERE.

Stem Cell Breakthrough: Embryos Needn't Be Killed

Once again, the purveyors of embryonic death have been dealt a blow by researchers developing multiple, unrelated techniques to use adult bone marrow and fat cells to regenerate and repair a variety of damaged body tissue types.

"This technique is a significant advance on many of the current unproven stem cell therapies, which have shown little or no objective evidence they contribute directly to new tissue formation."
-- John Pimanda, Associate Professor, University of New South Wales (UNSW)

Thus, countering scientists who proclaim: Embryo-killing is Essential for Life

For background, read Stem Cell Science Advances WithOUT Killing Embryos

-- From "Study Finds Stem Cells Can Help to Heal Damaged Hearts" posted at KMOX-AM1120 (St. Louis, MO) CBS News 4/5/16

The findings of this new study were just presented at a major cardiology conference in Chicago. SLU Care cardiologist Dr. Michael Lim at SSM Health SLU Hospital was there.

Stem cells from a patient’s own bone marrow were harvested, treated and then directly re-injected back into the muscle.

Lim says when they find that less people are dead with one therapy versus those who did not get the therapy, it is strong evidence. He adds that it is really great news.

To read the entire article above, CLICK HERE.

From "Stem Cell Therapy Promising Against Heart Failure" by Robert Preidt, HealthDay News Reporter, posted at WebMD News 4/4/16

The clinical trial found that end-stage heart failure patients treated with stem cells harvested from their own bone marrow had 37 percent fewer cardiac events than those who received a "dummy" placebo.

If further studies are successful, stem cell therapy may one day offer an alternative to current treatments for end-stage heart failure, such as heart transplantation and left ventricular assist device therapy, the researchers said.

The study was published online April 4 in The Lancet journal and presented simultaneously at the annual meeting of the American College of Cardiology (ACC) in Chicago.

To read the entire article above, CLICK HERE.

From "Cell therapy could help slow decline in heart failure patients, study suggests" by Carina Storrs, Special to CNN 4/4/16

"This would be considered a huge success because this much of a reduction has not been shown with any other (cell) therapy," said Dr. Amit N. Patel, director of the clinical regenerative medicine program in the University of Utah Department of Surgery.

Here's how the therapy, which is called Ixmyelocel-T, is carried out: The researchers remove about three tablespoons of bone marrow from the hip bone while the patient is lightly sedated. The cells in the bone marrow then grow in an instrument called a bioreactor for two weeks, producing a "soup" of cells containing certain types of stem cells and immune cells that can help remodel tissue and reduce inflammation, Patel said. Finally the researchers use special catheters to identify the weakest parts of the heart and inject the soup into these areas.

In the year after the injection, 20.3% of the patients in the cell therapy group experienced an adverse event such as infection or stroke, compared with 41.8% of the placebo group. "It was surprising that the (placebo) patients did significantly worse," Patel said. This could have been because they underwent the same invasive procedures as the treatment group, but did not receive the same potentially beneficial cell therapy, which could have anti-inflammatory effects that decreased adverse events, he said.

To read the entire article above, CLICK HERE.

From "New stem cell therapy which mimics how salamanders grow new limbs raises hopes of new regenerative treatments" by John von Radowitz, UK Independent 4/4/16

Therapies based on "induced multipotent stem" (iMS) cells could be tested in human trials as early as next year, according to Australian researchers.

While ES [embryonic stem] cells are natural, obtained from early-stage embryos, iPS cells are made by reprogramming adult cells. But both run the risk of generating cancerous tumours, and iPS cells are created using genes injected by viruses, which is clinically unacceptable.

The iMS cells which are the focus of the new research reported in the journal Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences have a more limited capacity but claimed to be safer than ES or iPS cells.

To read the entire article above, CLICK HERE.

From "Scientists develop 'game changing' stem cell repair system" posted at Phys.org Science X network 4/4/16

Stem cell therapies capable of regenerating any human tissue damaged by injury, disease or ageing could be available within a few years, following landmark research led by UNSW Australia researchers.

The repair system, similar to the method used by salamanders to regenerate limbs, could be used to repair everything from spinal discs to bone fractures, and has the potential to transform current treatment approaches to regenerative medicine.

Study lead author, haematologist and UNSW Associate Professor John Pimanda, said the new technique, which reprograms bone and fat cells into induced multipotent stem cells (iMS), has been successfully demonstrated in mice.

The technique developed by UNSW researchers involves extracting adult human fat cells and treating them with the compound 5-Azacytidine (AZA), along with platelet-derived growth factor-AB (PDGF-AB) for approximately two days. The cells are then treated with the growth factor alone for a further two-three weeks.

AZA is known to induce cell plasticity, which is crucial for reprogramming cells. The AZA compound relaxes the hard-wiring of the cell, which is expanded by the growth factor, transforming the bone and fat cells into iMS cells. When the stem cells are inserted into the damaged tissue site, they multiply, promoting growth and healing.

To read the entire article above, CLICK HERE.

Embryo-killing Essential for Life, Scientists Say

Recent advancements in stem cell research using adult skin cells have demonstrated that destruction of human embryos is not necessary to advance disease-curing science.  However, this week, scientists at the University of Cambridge claimed that their new method of obtaining naïve pluripotent stem cells from human embryos — destroying life at its earliest stages — is the best hope to cure disease.

For background, read Stem Cell Science Advances WithOUT Killing Embryos

Click headlines below to read previous articles:

Human Embryos Cloned, Killed to Harvest Stem Cells

Unborn Must Die so Others Can Live, Scientists Say

Hollywood Actor Recants Embryonic Stem Cells for Parkinson's Cure

-- From "Scientists develop early stage embryonic stem cells" by Stephen Feller, UPI 3/4/16

The technique, described in a study published in the journal Stem Cell Reports, is significant because current methods of obtaining stem cells can be difficult, and those cells often still contain instructions to become a specific cell type.

Naive pluripotent stem cells are the earliest incarnation of the cells before they have differentiated into the types of cells found in different organs and parts of the body.

While researchers have two resources for pluripotent stem cells -- embryonic stem cells derived from fertilized eggs discarded from IVF procedures and skin cells that have been induced into becoming stem cells -- both have been "primed" to differentiate into other cell types.

In addition to opening up new methods of research -- such as how Down syndrome occurs during cell development -- scientists said earlier stem cells could make it easier to develop cells needed for regeneration of damaged organs and tissues, including those that do not regenerate very well, such as the heart, brain and pancreas.

To read the entire article above, CLICK HERE.

From "Cambridge Researchers Develop New Technique of Deriving Embryonic Stem Cells" by Barbara Mast, Lighthouse News Daily 3/5/16

The researchers from the Wellcome Trust-Medical Research Council Cambridge Stem Cell Institute managed to take cells from the blastocyst and grow them individually.

According to lead author Tony Parenti, other researchers may have spotted these cells before, but they probably thought they were defective or cancer-like formations. The Cambridge scientists, on the other hand, chose not to ignore those cells, that others overlooked, and decide to study their characteristics.

To read the entire article above, CLICK HERE.

From "Scientists develop very early stage human embryonic stem cell lines for first time" posted at EurekAlert (American Association for the Advancement of Science) 3/4/16

When an egg cell is fertilised by a sperm, it begins to divide and replicate before the embryo takes shape. Around day five, the embryonic cells cluster together and form a structure called the 'blastocyst'. This occurs before implantation into the uterus. The blastocyst comprises three cell types: cells that will develop into the placenta and allow the embryo to attach to the womb; and cells that form the 'yolk sac', which provides nutrients to the developing foetus; and the 'epiblast' comprising the naïve cells that will develop into the future body.

In research published today in the journal Stem Cell Reports, scientists from the Wellcome Trust-Medical Research Council Cambridge Stem Cell Institute managed to remove cells from the blastocyst at around day six and grow them individually in culture. By separating the cells, the researchers in effect stopped them 'talking' to each other, preventing them from being steered down a particular path of development.

Naïve pluripotent stem cells in principle have no restrictions on the types of adult tissue into which they can develop, which means they may have promising therapeutic uses in regenerative medicine to treat devastating conditions that affect various organs and tissues, particularly those that have poor regenerative capacity, such as the heart, brain and pancreas.

To read the entire article above, CLICK HERE.

Also read Type 1 Diabetics' Hope Rests in Dead Human Embryos

And read Harvesting Blood of Children for Fountain of Youth

Unborn Must Die so Others Can Live, Scientists Say

An international group of scientists, ethicists and policy experts claim it is "essential" that experimentation on human beings, using "genetic modified (GM) embryos," be legalized to cure diseases and improve IVF and human reproduction.  However, critics say that too little is understood about the process, and furthermore, it will eventually lead to "designer babies."

“Restricting research because of concerns that reproductive application is premature and unsafe will ensure that it remains forever premature and risky, for want of better knowledge.”
-- Sarah Chan, Hinxton Group Steering Committee, University of Edinburgh

For background, read Secret Designer Babies via Gene-editing Science

Click headlines below to read previous articles:

Planned Parenthood Sells Aborted Baby Parts for Research

Harvesting Blood of Children for Fountain of Youth

Type 1 Diabetics' Hope Rests in Dead Human Embryos

'Humanized Mice' Created via Abortion: Gay Agenda

-- From "Genetic Modification of Human Embryos of 'Tremendous Value,' Say Scientists" by Conor Gaffey, Newsweek 9/10/15

The Hinxton Group, which describes itself as an international consortium on stem cells and bioethics, also said in a statement released on Wednesday that the engineering of GM babies—a concept commonly called designer babies—could be "morally acceptable" in the future, although it said it was not in favour of the procedure at present.

Modern gene-editing tools such as CRISPR/Cas9—a technique which can reportedly edit the genomic sequence in a highly targeted way—are "not only very precise, but also easy, inexpensive, and, critically, very efficient," the group said.

Earlier this year, Chinese scientists reportedly edited the genomes of human embryos in what was described as "a world first" by the journal Nature.

To read the entire article above, CLICK HERE.

From "Call for research into genetically modified human embryos" by Newsmedia posted at Dispatch Times 9/10/15

However, Debra Mathews, assistant director of science programs at the Johns Hopkins Berman Institute of Bioethics and a member of the Hinxton Group, said, in the statement, that despite “controversy and deep moral disagreement” over the issue, the solution was “not to stop all discussion, debate and research, but rather to engage with the public, policymakers and the broader scientific community”.

A group of experts on Wednesday said that human embryo genetic modification should be allowed, as it will help in understanding early embryos’ biology. However they said they would not support the birth of genetically modified human babies, for the time being.

Professor Emmanuelle Charpentier is of opinion that the human germline should not be manipulated just with the objective of changing some of the genetic traits.

To read the entire article above, CLICK HERE.

From "GM embryos 'essential', says report" by James Gallagher, Health editor, BBC News 9/10/15

A meeting of the influential Hinxton Group, in Manchester, acknowledged that the rate of progress meant there was a "pressure to make decisions" and argued embryo editing should be allowed.

In a statement, it said: "We believe that while this technology has tremendous value to basic research and enormous potential... it is not sufficiently developed to consider human genome editing for clinical reproductive purposes at this time."

This is in stark contrast to the US National Institutes of Health, which has already refused to fund any gene editing of embryos.

Its director, Dr Francis Collins, who was also a key player in the Human Genome Project, said: "The concept of altering the human germline [inherited DNA] in embryos for clinical purposes has been debated over many years from many different perspectives, and has been viewed almost universally as a line that should not be crossed."

To read the entire article above, CLICK HERE.

From "Research on gene editing in embryos is justified, group says" by Gretchen Vogel, Science Magazine (American Association for the Advancement of Science) 9/10/15

At a meeting on 3 and 4 September, 22 Hinxton Group members from Canada, the United Kingdom, the United States, Italy, Germany, Mexico, Israel, and the Netherlands met to discuss the scientific and ethical issues surrounding the use of gene-editing techniques in human cells, especially embryos, stem cells, and cells that can give rise to sperm or eggs. They concluded in a consensus statement released today that any use of the technologies for reproduction is premature. But scientists will need to test them on human embryos in the lab to find out whether the techniques ever could be safe and effective enough to use, they say. Lab-based experiments can also help answer important questions about early human development and the development of sperm and eggs cells, says Robin Lovell-Badge, a developmental biologist at the Francis Crick Institute in London and a member of the Hinxton Group steering committee.

The statement urges scientists who want to use genome editing in human embryos to “consider carefully the category of embryo used.” Using embryos left over from in vitro fertilization treatments might not provide the best data, the statement says, since those embryos already contain multiple cells. The editing techniques would likely affect each cell differently, so that the resulting embryo would be a mosaic of cells with different genetic alterations. The statement concludes that certain experiments will require researchers to create new embryos specifically for research, a practice that is controversial and prohibited in some countries.

To read the entire article above, CLICK HERE.

From "Scientists push for serious debates over 'essential' human embryo testing" posted at Irish Examiner 9/10/15

Genetic modification of human embryos has officially been deemed as “essential” and should be allowed so scientists can better understand basic biology, according to a report.

However, scientists can’t get too excited yet as the group added that the technology is not yet advanced enough to be used in the reproduction process, and there is still the ongoing issue that some find the concept of genetically modified babies “morally troubling”.

But the group warns it would be “dangerous” to prevent research in the area, and member and academic Sarah Chan said: “Genome editing technologies hold huge potential for advancing basic research and improving human health. The prospect that genome editing may one day be used to create genetically modified humans should not in itself be cause for concern, particularly where what is at stake is curing or preventing serious disease.

To read the entire article above, CLICK HERE.

Also read Donor Eggs & IVF 'Creates' Life, but Causes More Death as Scientists Create Artificial Human Eggs and Sperm, whereas Human Eggs are Best When Fresh, NOT Frozen - DAH!

And read Toddler to 'Own' 11 Future Children: An IVF Wonder

Gay Skin Cells Can Create Babies, Scientists Say

Furthering the Gay Agenda, stem cell researchers at Cambridge University funded by the Wellcome Trust, along with the Weizmann Institute of Science in Israel, have shown that skin from a pair of homosexuals can be used to manufacture human egg and sperm, in the hopes that normal sexual intercourse can be unnecessary for procreation.

For background, read Scientists Create Artificial Human Eggs and Sperm as well as Gay Procreation: Successful Offspring from Two Males

Also read President Obama's FDA: Why not Three Biological Parents?

And read Everyone Pays for 'Gay Fertility' Treatments in California

UPDATE 8/3/15: Teenage 'Boy' Harvests Own Eggs to be Mother & Transgender 'Father'

-- From "Cell breakthrough to bring two-dad babies" by Lois Rogers, The UK Sunday Times 2/22/15

The breakthrough raises the prospect of the first fully “manufactured” baby made in a laboratory dish from the skin cells of two adults of the same gender.

The researchers admitted that the development raised serious ethical issues, but said it would help people who had become infertile through disease and had also prompted interest from gay people.

Azim Surani who is leading the cell project, was also involved in the research that led to the birth of Louise Brown Azim Surani who is leading the cell project, was also involved in the research that led to the birth of Louise Brown.

To read the entire article above, CLICK HERE.

From "Breakthrough paves way for same sex couple babies" by PTI, posted at The Financial Express 2/22/15

Researchers have previously created live baby mice using engineered eggs and sperm, but until now have struggled to create a human version of these ‘primordial germ’ or stem cells.

The team has compared the engineered germ cells with natural human stem cells taken from aborted human foetuses to check that the artificially created versions of the cells had identical characteristics, ‘The Times’ reported.

“We have also discovered that one of the things that happens in these germ cells is that epigenetic mutations, the cell mistakes that occur with age, are wiped out,” said Surani, who was involved in research that led to the birth of Louise Brown, the world’s first test-tube baby, in 1978.

Jacob Hanna, the specialist leading the project’s Israeli arm, said it may be possible to use the technique to create a baby in just two years.

To read the entire article above, CLICK HERE.

From "Babies from same sex couples now possible following stem cell breakthrough" by Hannah Osborne, International Business Times 2/23/15

Publishing their findings in the journal Cell, researchers used the skin from five adults to create stem cells that make sperm and eggs in the body. In total, they have created new cell lines from ten different donor sources - five embyros and five adults.

The team compared compared the engineered stem cells with natural human stem cells from aborted human foetuses to check they have identical characteristics, the Sunday Times reports.

Jacob Hanna, from the Weizmann Institute, added: "It has already caused interest from gay groups because of the possibility of making egg and sperm cells from parents of the same sex."

However, he said they are aware of the vast ethical concerns their findings raise in terms of the potential for designer babies: "I am not in favour of creating engineered humans and the social and ethical implications need to be thought through."

To read the entire article above, CLICK HERE.

Also read Toddler to 'Own' 11 Future Children: An IVF Wonder

And read Boy 'Created' Artificially to Cure Sister's Disease

Scientists Create Artificial Human Eggs and Sperm

Having been stumped trying to prove there's life beyond earth, mankind turns its hopes to creating life here on earth by unnatural means.

According to the journal Cell, scientists at the University of Cambridge (UK) and the Weizmann Institute (Israel) claim to have created human germ cells — the essence of human beings — by using embryonic stem cells and adult skin cells.

For background, read God Replaced? Scientists Create Life

And read Human Embryos Cloned, Killed to Harvest Stem Cells as well as Harvesting Blood of Children for Fountain of Youth

Also read Scientists Create Sperm and thus, The Feminist's Dream: A Civilization Without Men

In addition, read President Obama's FDA: Why not Three Biological Parents?

-- From "Scientists create artificial human eggs and sperm" by Jessica Firger, CBS News 12/26/14

"Germ cells are 'immortal' in the sense that they provide an enduring link between all generations, carrying genetic information from one generation to the next," Azim Surani, PhD, professor of physiology and reproduction [of the Gurdon Institute] at the University of Cambridge, said in a press release.

. . . some cells in the fetus become primordial germ cells (PGCs) and eventually evolve into the cells of either sperm or eggs, which will allow this offspring to pass their genes on to a future generation.

In the study, the researchers identified a single gene known as SOX17, which is directly responsible for ordering human stem cells to become the cells that will turn into sperm and eggs. . . .

Many experts say that studying epigenetics may lead to a clearer understanding of age-related diseases such as cancer, since the changes lie not in the DNA itself, but rather the surrounding chemicals that make proteins and even facilitate new cell growth, including the cells that make up sperm and eggs.

To read the entire article above, CLICK HERE.

From "Researchers create egg and sperm precursors using human embryonic stem cells" by Honor Whiteman, Medical News Today 12/29/14

"The creation of PGCs is one of the earliest events during early mammalian development," says first study author Dr. Naoko Irie, also of the Gurdon Institute at the University of Cambridge. "It's a stage we've managed to recreate using stem cells from mice and rats, but until now few researchers have done this systematically using human stem cells."

In their study, Prof. Surani and his team discovered that a gene called SOX17 plays an important role in a process called "specification" - transforming human stem cells into PGCs. Past research has found that SOX17 is involved in changing human stem cells into endodermal cells, but the gene has never before been linked to PGC specification.

The researchers found they were also able to create PGCs using reprogrammed adult cells, including skin cells. They say this process may open the door to research on patient-specific cells, which may increase understanding of infertility, the human germline and germ cell tumors.

In addition, the team says their findings may increase knowledge of how environmental factors that may affect gene activity - such as smoking or diet - can be inherited.

To read the entire article above, CLICK HERE.
 
From "Infertility Treatment May Soon Include Artificial Sperm, Egg Cells Derived From Stem Cells" by Anthony Rivas, Medical Daily 12/28/14

Infertility affects more people than you might have expected. After a year of timing menstrual cycles, taking steps to boost sperm quality and count, and countless doctor’s visits, about 15 percent of couples still aren’t able to get pregnant. There are treatments, but those don’t always work either, and they sometimes end in multiple pregnancies. A new treatment for infertility may be on the horizon . . .

It’s unclear whether SOX17 can be manipulated to change these cells into sperm or egg as a fertility treatment, as more research is needed. Nevertheless, the scientists said the current findings were enough to take the research in various directions, not only with regard to infertility but also cancer and epigenetics — a field of research that investigates the effects of environmental chemicals on our genes’ expressions. In doing so, the researchers may shed light on “age-related disease, which in part might be due to cumulative epigenetic mutations,” Surani said.

To read the entire article above, CLICK HERE.

From "Artificial wombs: The coming era of motherless births" by David Warmflash (astrobiologist, physician and science writer), Genetic Literacy Project 1/4/15

A comprehensive review published by the New York Academy of Sciences three years ago highlights a series of achievements by various research groups using ex vivo (out of the body) uterus environments to support mammalian fetuses early in pregnancy. Essentially, two areas of biotechnology are developing rapidly that potentially can enable ectogenesis in humans, and, along the way, what the authors of the Academy review call partial ectogenesis.

. . . the capability to push back the limit is around the corner. One of the two developing key technologies is the artificial amniotic fluid filled environment that has continued to develop with laboratory animal models since the work with goats in the 1990s. The other area is embryo transfer. Not only can a developing mammal be transferred from the uterus of its own mother to that of a surrogate, but gradually investigators are reproducing the endometrium–the cell layer of the uterus that contains and nourishes the pregnancy–as a cell culture, or an in vitro model. The convergence of these technologies will make it possible to transfer a developing human into a system that includes the placenta and umbilical cord and supplies all consumables (oxygen and food), and removes all waste, directly through the blood.

. . . While social conservatives might be receptive about what an artificial uterus might do to the abortion paradigm, make no mistake they’d probably not be happy that the technology also stands to make it much easier for male gay couples to have babies. . . .

To read the entire article above, CLICK HERE.

UPDATE 1/31/15: From "Woman born with no womb gives birth to miracle twins" by Patrick Sawer, UK Telegraph

Hayley Haynes had the miracle babies, Avery and Darcey, after hormone therapy enabled her to grow a womb.

She was told at the age of 19 that she would never be able to give birth as she had no womb, ovaries or Fallopian tubes.

But nine years on she has given birth to the twins after IVF treatment using an egg donor.

Following months of hospital trips and blood tests, specialists told her she had been born with XY chromosomes, meaning she was genetically male. She had no reproductive organs thanks to a condition called androgen insensitivity syndrome.

The first signs of hope that Mrs Hayne’s condition might be curable came in 2007 when a new specialist at Royal Derby Hospital found a tiny womb missed on previous scans.

To read the entire article above, CLICK HERE.

Also read Type 1 Diabetics' Hope Rests in Dead Human Embryos

Type 1 Diabetics' Hope Rests in Dead Human Embryos

Once again, media propaganda is hyping a medical miracle cure resulting from embryonic stem cell research — this time it's type 1 diabetes.  However, as usual, a close study of the announced breakthrough reveals that it's adult stem cells (which don't requiring killing anyone), that may lead to the cure, rather than stem cells derived from the destruction of embryos.

For background, click headlines below to read previous articles:

Human Embryos Cloned, Killed to Harvest Stem Cells

Stem Cell Science Advances WithOUT Killing Embryos

Court OKs Obama Killing Embryos with Tax Dollars

Harvesting Blood of Children for Fountain of Youth



-- From "Stem Cell Success Raises Hopes of Type 1 Diabetes Cure" by Alan Mozes, HealthDay Reporter 10/9/14

In what may be a step toward a cure for type 1 diabetes, researchers say they've developed a large-scale method for turning human embryonic stem cells into fully functioning beta cells capable of producing insulin.

[Dr. Douglas] Melton, co-director of the Stem Cell Institute at Harvard [University], described his work as a "personal quest," given that he has two children with type 1 diabetes.

Stem cells are essentially undifferentiated cells that can be induced into becoming specialized cells that are tissue- or organ-specific, according to the U.S. National Institutes of Health.

In some cases, such cells are sourced from embryonic tissue. Alternatively, it's possible to derive stem cells from prespecialized adult cells that are then reprogrammed to morph into an undifferentiated state. These are called induced pluripotent stem cells [hiPSC].

Because the current effort was launched before the innovation of induced pluripotent stem cells [hiPSC], Melton said his team conducted its work using embryonic stem cells. Nevertheless, he said the newfound ability to generate large supplies of beta cells will work using either type.

To read the entire article above, CLICK HERE.

From "Stem cell research offers hope on type 1 diabetes" by Carolyn Y. Johnson, Boston Globe Staff 10/9/14

In a paper published in the journal Cell on Thursday, [Melton] reported a step-by-step procedure that starts with stem cells and results in hundreds of millions of the precious pancreatic cells that secrete the hormone insulin, keeping blood sugar levels in balance. It is the lack of insulin produced by those cells, called beta cells, that lies at the root of type 1 diabetes.

Melton cautions that the work is still years from being tested in patients and many challenges, scientific and practical, remain. . . .

“We’re tired of curing mice,” Melton said in an interview. “Most patients are sick of hearing that something’s just around the corner; I’m sick of thinking things are just around the corner. But I do believe in the big picture.”

Earlier this year, [Dieter Egli, assistant professor in the pediatrics department at Columbia University Medical Center] was able to create embryonic stem cells from a person with type 1 diabetes, through a process called somatic cell nuclear transfer. He now plans to use Melton’s procedure to create the beta cells that are affected by the disease.

To read the entire article above, CLICK HERE.

From "Giant leap against diabetes" by B. D. Colen, Harvard Gazette Staff Writer 10/9/14

With human embryonic stem cells as a starting point, the scientists were for the first time able to produce, in the kind of massive quantities needed for cell transplantation and pharmaceutical purposes, human insulin-producing beta cells equivalent in most every way to normally functioning beta cells.

Richard A. Insel, chief scientific officer at JDRF (Juvenile Diabetes Research Foundation), which helps fund Melton’s work, said “JDRF is thrilled with this advancement toward large-scale production of mature, functional human beta cells by Dr. Melton and his team. . . .”

Eliot Brenner, program director of the Helmsley Charitable Trust’s type 1 diabetes program, said, “The trust is pleased to have supported Dr. Melton and his team in this breakthrough. . . .”

In addition to the institutions and individual cited above, the work was funded by the Harvard Stem Cell Institute, the National Institutes of Health, and the JPB Foundation.

To read the entire article above, CLICK HERE.

From "More Embryonic Stem Cell Hype, Less Reality and Ethics" by Dr. David Prentice, National Right to Life News Today 10/9/14

A paper from the lab of Dr. Doug Melton, published in the journal Cell, in fact, shows only an incremental improvement in deriving functional beta cells–the insulin secreting cells found in the pancreas.

Melton’s lab generated millions of insulin-secreting cells from human embryonic stem cells (hESC, which require the destruction of a young human being) and from human induced pluripotent stem cells (hiPSC, the stem cells created from normal skin cells, without using embryos).

The authors tested batches of what it called SC-ß cells made from hESC as well as from hiPSC.  The results were equivalent no matter the starting cell type.  So for any future production of SC-ß cells, the authors have shown that no embryonic stem cells are necessary.

This is essential to reiterate. The paper itself makes the case that embryonic stem cells are not needed for even this incremental advance or for any subsequent work. However, as is always the case when embryonic stem cells are involved, the hype drowns out the more complex truth.

In the past, the obsession with human embryonic stem cells has led to some questionable claims about their abilities to treat diabetes.  Their ability to make authentic insulin, in quantities that would be useful, were first trumpeted and then shown to be incorrect and even fake.  In fact, teratoma formation (tumors) was often the result or even the inducer of insulin secretion from ESC. Artifact = not real, fake

The obsession with ESC continues to make headlines, but that does not help patients. . . .

To read the entire technical explanation in the article above, CLICK HERE.

Also read President Obama Wins Ruling: Embryos WILL be Destroyed

And read Hollywood Actor Recants Embryonic Stem Cells for Parkinson's Cure

Harvesting Blood of Children for Fountain of Youth

For those with no hope of life eternal . . .

Media are reporting a study using mice that points to a life-extending process whereby a young human's blood is pumped into, and joined with the blood of an elderly progenitor to reverse the aging process, while the young person's aging is accelerated.

Suggesting again:  Man "creating" life, for the purpose of destroying it, in order to extend the life of another (for a short time).

“Right now we can’t do anything for Alzheimer’s patients, and this [new process] seems so easy and simple.”
-- Tony Wyss-Coray, Stanford neuroscientist and Nature Medicine study author

For background, click headlines below to read previous articles:

Boy 'Created' Artificially to Cure Sister's Disease

Human Embryos Cloned, Killed to Harvest Stem Cells

Court OKs Obama Killing Embryos with Tax Dollars

IVF: 'Creating' Life & Aborting Life

Donor Eggs & IVF 'Creates' Life, but Causes More Death



-- From "New studies show that young blood reverses effects of aging when put into older mice" by Meeri Kim, Washington Post 5/4/14

After combining the blood circulations of two mice by conjoining them — one old, the other young — researchers found dramatic improvements in the older mouse’s muscle and brain. After four weeks, stem cells in both those areas got a boost of activity and were better able to produce neurons and muscle tissue.

But for the young mice, getting old blood was a definite setback. When conjoined to an older mouse, the creation of new cells in the young mouse slowed. Old blood seemed to cause premature aging.

Although initial results seem promising, questions abound. Will it work on humans? What is the proper dosing? Do you need a constant supply of young blood to maintain the effects? Are there long-term consequences?

The studies started with a Frankenstein-like setup called parabiosis. Small flaps of skin from the sides of two genetically identical mice are cut and sewn together. As the wounds heal, their tissue begins to fuse. The mice, now conjoined, share a single blood supply. Pairing old and young mice, or heterochronic parabiosis, has become an unexpectedly insightful tool for age research.

To read the entire article above, CLICK HERE.

From "Can Young Blood Reverse Aging in Old Mice?" by John Gever, Deputy Managing Editor, MedPage Today 5/5/14

Two other studies by a different research group, published online in Science to coincide with the blood-transfusion study's appearance in Nature Medicine, suggest that the mysterious [blood] factor could be growth differentiation factor 11 (GDF11), which previously was found to rejuvenate cardiac function in aged mice with heart failure.

These findings in turn build upon earlier experiments -- some by the same group at the University of California San Francisco (UCSF) and Stanford University in Stanford, Calif., responsible for the new Nature Medicine paper -- involving "heterochronic parabiosis," which connects the vascular systems of young and old mice so that the young animals' blood circulates through the older animals.

The Boston-based group behind the Science papers, led by Richard Lee, MD, and Amy Wagers, PhD, at the Harvard Stem Cell Institute, found that injections of recombinant GDF11 increased skeletal muscle growth and neurogenesis, but did not test for effects on cognition. They did, however, examine olfactory function and skeletal muscle strength and endurance.

To read the entire article above, CLICK HERE.

From "Young Blood May Hold Key to Reversing Aging" by Carl Zimmer, New York Times 5/4/14

In a study published Sunday in the journal Nature Medicine, Dr. Villeda, now a faculty fellow at the University of California, San Francisco, and his colleagues unveiled more details of what young blood does to the brains of old mice.

After parabiosis, Dr. Villeda and his colleagues found that the neurons in the hippocampus of the old mice sprouted new connections. They then moved beyond parabiosis by removing the cells and platelets from the blood of young mice and injecting the plasma that remained into old mice. That injection caused the old mice to perform far better on memory tests.

“We can turn back the clock instead of slowing the clock down,” said Dr. Toren Finkel, director of the Center for Molecular Medicine at the National Heart, Lung and Blood Institute. “That’s a nice thought if it pans out.”

This reversal could occur throughout the body, the new research suggests. “Instead of taking a drug for your heart and a drug for your muscles and a drug for your brain, maybe you could come up with something that affected them all,” Dr. Wagers said.

To read the entire article above, CLICK HERE.

From "Young blood (aka ‘vampire therapy’) may slow the process of aging, cure Alzheimer’s disease: scientists" by Sarah Knapton, UK Telegraph 5/5/14

Although both the discoveries were made in mice, researchers are hoping to begin human trials in the next two to three years, in studies that could bring rapid improvements for human longevity and health.

If the same were seem in humans, it could lead to new therapies for recharging our aging brains and novel drugs for treating dementia.

Prof. Lee Rubin, a Harvard stem cell biologist, added: “We do think that, at least in principal, there will be a way to reverse some of the decline of aging with a single protein. It isn’t out of question that GDF11, or a drug developed from it, might be worthwhile in [treating] Alzheimer’s disease.”

To read the entire article above, CLICK HERE.

Human Embryos Cloned, Killed to Harvest Stem Cells

In a similar manner that Dolly the sheep was cloned in 1996 (somatic cell nuclear transfer, or SCNT), researchers implanted DNA from two men into four women's eggs and then "created" living human beings, which they destroyed in order to produce stem cell lines for further research.

“This and every technical advance in cloning human tissue raises the possibility that somebody will use it to clone a human being, and that is a prospect everyone is against.”
-- Marcy Darnovsky, Executive Director, Center for Genetics and Society (Berkeley, CA)

For background, read Court OKs Obama Killing Embryos with Tax Dollars and also read Obama Administration OKs Aborted Baby Brain Experiments

Such destruction of human life is unnecessary because Stem Cell Science is Advancing WithOUT Embryos.

-- From "Cloning advance using stem cells from human adult reopens ethical questions" by Ariana Eunjung Cha, Washington Post 4/17/14

The first success in humans was reported last year by scientists at the Oregon Health & Science University and the Oregon National Primate Research Center. But they used donor cells from infants. In this study, the cells came from two men, a 35-year-old and a 75-year-old.

While the research published Thursday involves cells that are technically an early stage embryo, the intention is not to try to grow them into a fully formed human. However the techniques in theory could be a first step toward creating a baby with the same genetic makeup as a donor.

The research was conducted in California by a large team that included representatives from both academia and industry and was funded by a private medical foundation and South Korea’s Ministry of Science.

At least 15 states have laws addressing human cloning. About half of them ban both reproductive and therapeutic cloning.

To read the entire article above, CLICK HERE.

From "In a cloning first, scientists create stem cells from adults" by Sharon Begley, Reuters 4/17/14

The advance, described online in the journal Cell Stem Cell, is the first time researchers have achieved "therapeutic cloning" of adults. Technically called somatic-cell nuclear transfer, therapeutic cloning means producing embryonic cells genetically identical to a donor, usually for the purpose of using those cells to treat disease.

But nuclear transfer is also the first step in reproductive cloning, or producing a genetic duplicate of someone . . .

If the embryo were implanted in a uterus, it could develop into a clone of the DNA donor, which is how Dolly was created. "Without regulations in place, such embryos could also be used for human reproductive cloning, although this would be unsafe and grossly unethical," said Dr Robert Lanza, chief scientist of Massachusetts-based biotech Advanced Cell Technology and a co-author of the new study.

The goal is to grow these embryonic stem cells in lab dishes and coax them to turn into specialized cells for therapeutic use against an illness the DNA donor has, such as Parkinson's disease, heart disease, multiple sclerosis or type-1 diabetes. Because the cells are genetically identical to the donor's, they would not be rejected by the immune system.

To read the entire article above, CLICK HERE.

From "Scientists use cloning to make stem cells matched to two adults" by Monte Morin, Los Angeles Times 4/17/14

The scientists in Oregon and the authors of the new report acknowledged that the clones they created could develop into babies if implanted in surrogate wombs. But like others in the field, they have said reproductive cloning would be unethical and irresponsible.

Experts who were not involved in the experiments said the achievement was significant because it offered clear confirmation that so-called therapeutic cloning is possible with human cells. Given the field's history of fraudulent claims, such confirmation was valuable, said stem cell researcher Sean Morrison, director of the Children's Medical Center Research Institute at UT Southwestern.

To read the entire article above, CLICK HERE.

From "Scientists use cloning to make stem cells matched to two adults" by Monte Morin, Los Angeles Times 4/22/14

Dr Robert Lanza, the chief scientific officer for Advanced Cell Technology Inc., has been working on SCNT off and on for about 15 years.

In the years that Lanza spent working on therapeutic cloning, many of his colleagues shifted their focus to a method that uses viruses and other compounds to rewind a cell to an earlier, more flexible state of development. The researcher who first developed these induced pluripotent stem cells, or iPS cells, won a Nobel Prize for the work.

With so much momentum behind iPS cells, it's unlikely that the new study will prompt many researchers to return their focus to SCNT, said Dr Arnold Kriegstein, director of the Developmental and Stem Cell Biology Program at UCSF School of Medicine.

"With the iPS technology, almost any molecular biology lab can create stem cell lines using simply skin cells, or even blood cells," said Kriegstein, who wasn't involved in the cloning studies.

To read the entire article above, CLICK HERE.

Not to mention that iPS technology does NOT require killing embryos!

Also read Lab 'Creates' Human Life with 3 Biological Parents as well as Stem Cell Cloning, Buying Women's Eggs

Most Disgusted with American Morals, Yet Favor Sin

According to this month's polls from Gallup, the vast majority of Americans do NOT view the state of moral values in the nation as good, and expect it to get worse.  Yet, at the same time, the vast majority say the following are acceptable: homosexual behavior, childbirth outside of marriage, fornication, divorce, and killing unborn children for medical research.

For background on moral decay in America, read any post from the thousands-long archive list at the side of this webpage.

UPDATE 6/9/15: Most Liberals Say American Morals Getting Worse

-- From "Poll: Outlook on U.S. moral values pessimistic" by UPI 5/22/13

Seventy-two percent of respondents said they think moral values in the country generally are worsening, essentially unchanged from 73 percent last year, results of Gallup's annual Values and Beliefs survey released Wednesday indicated.

Forty-four percent of respondents rated the state of moral values in the United States as "poor," the Princeton, N.J., polling agency said. Forty-three percent expressed the same view last year.

Nineteen percent said the state of moral values in the United States was "excellent" or "good," while 36 percent say they are "only fair," Gallup said.

To read the entire article above, CLICK HERE.

From "Gallup poll: Most Americans think the country’s lost its moral compass" by Cheryl Wetzstein, The Washington Times 5/22/13

The random poll, conducted by telephone of 1,535 adults, also found pessimism to be strongest among Republicans (87 percent) and political independents (68 percent), compared with Democrats (56 percent).

Pessimism was more than 60 percent in all groups of Americans, regardless of breakdowns by annual household income, marital status or religious attendance.

To read the entire article above, CLICK HERE.

From "Gallup Poll: Majority Now Say Gay Sex, Unwed Births, Are Morally OK" by Napp Nazworth, Christian Post Reporter 5/21/13

In the new survey, 59 percent of American adults answered that gay or lesbian relations are morally acceptable, a 19 percentage point increase since 2001 when only 40 percent said it was morally acceptable.

Sixty percent of respondents said that having a baby outside of marriage was morally acceptable, a 15 percentage point increase since 2002 when only 45 percent said it was morally acceptable.

The other large increases in moral acceptability were: sex between an unmarried man and woman went from 53 to 63 percent, divorce went from 59 to 63 percent, and medical research using stem cells from human embryos went from 52 to 60 percent.

The moral acceptability of abortion remained the same as it was in 2001, at 42 percent. There was little change in the moral acceptability of pornography (31 percent), gambling (64 percent), buying and wearing clothing made of animal fur (59 percent), and the death penalty (62 percent).

To read the entire article above, CLICK HERE.

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Court OKs Obama Killing Embryos with Tax Dollars

The U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals for the D.C. Circuit upheld the dismissal of a challenge to President Obama's adamant directive to his National Institutes of Health to use human embryos for research. The challengers claimed the president violated the 1996 Dickey-Wicker law prohibiting use of tax dollars to destroy human life.

President Obama supporters say IVF fertility clinics simply provide researchers with unwanted human embryos already designated for destruction.
For background, read Obama Wins Ruling: Embryos will be Destroyed and also read Stem Cell Science Advances Without Embryos as well as Actor Recants Embryonic Stem Cells for Parkinson's Cure

-- From "Federal Stem-Cell Funding Upheld by Court" by The Associated Press 8/24/12

"Dickey-Wicker permits federal funding of research projects that utilize already-derived ESCs—which are not themselves embryos—because no 'human embryo or embryos are destroyed' in such projects," Chief Judge David B. Sentelle said in the ruling, adding that the plaintiffs made the same argument the last the time the court reviewed the issue. "Therefore, unless they have established some 'extraordinary circumstance,' the law of the case is established and we will not revisit the issue."

The lawsuit was filed in 2009 by two scientists who argued that President Barack Obama's expansion jeopardized their ability to win government funding for research using adult stem cells—ones that have already matured to create specific types of tissues—because it will mean extra competition.

President George W. Bush also permitted stem-cell research, but limited the availability of taxpayer funds to embryonic stem-cell lines that were already in existence and "where the life and death decision has already been made."

Mr. Obama's order removed that limitation, allowing projects that involve stem cells from already destroyed embryos or embryos to be destroyed in the future. To qualify, parents who donate the original embryo must be told of other options, such as donating to another infertile woman.

To read the entire article above, CLICK HERE.

From "Court Upholds Obama's Embryonic Stem Cell Research Funding" by Anugrah Kumar, Christian Post Contributor 8/25/12

Alliance Defending Freedom Senior Counsel Steven H. Aden . . . said the law's clear intent had been utterly ignored. "Congress designed that law so that Americans don't pay any more precious taxpayer dollars for needless research made irrelevant by adult stem cell and other research. In the current economic climate, it makes even less sense for the Obama administration to use taxpayer money for this illegal and unethical purpose."

In August 2010, U.S. District Judge Royce Lamberth ruled that the executive order likely violated the Dickey-Wicker law. But in April 2011, a federal appeals court ruled Obama can use taxpayers' money to fund embryonic stem cell research.

Human embryonic stem cell research, with the present state of technology, involves the creation of a human embryonic stem cell line, which requires the destruction of a human embryo, and raises concerns over the rights and status of the embryo as an early-aged human life

To read the entire article above, CLICK HERE.

From "Court: Obama Can Force Taxpayer-Funded Embryonic Stem Cell Research" by Steven Ertelt, LifeNews.com 8/24/12

Dr. David Prentice, Family Research Council’s Senior Fellow for Life Sciences, made the following comments to LifeNews concerning today’s ruling:

“We are disappointed that the Appeals Court panel did not agree that the Obama administration is violating the 1996 Dickey-Wicker amendment by providing taxpayer funding for human embryonic stem cell research. Embryonic stem cell research relies on the destruction of young human embryos, and that destruction is integral to the research.”

“There would be no embryonic stem cells available for federal funding without first harming and destroying a young human embryo, an act that is prohibited by the Dickey-Wicker language which is passed annually. A plain reading of Dickey-Wicker would eliminate all taxpayer funds for embryonic stem cell research. Federal funding of embryonic stem cell research is a tragic waste of lives as well as taxpayer money, since despite the promises made to gain the federal funding, there is not a single example of a successful treatment. Only adult stem cells have successfully treated any patient, now helping thousands of people for dozens of conditions.”

Sam Casey, General Counsel of Advocates International’s Law of Life Project, a public interest legal project involved in the case, pointed out that NIH officials have admitted they violated the public comment process by ignoring the majority of comments coming from pro-life advocates opposed to destroying unborn children for their stem cells.

“The majority of the almost 50,000 comments that the NIH received were opposed to funding this research, and by its own admission, NIH totally ignored these comments,” he said. “The so-called spare human embryos being stored in IVF clinics around the United States are not ‘in excess of need,’ as the NIH in its guidelines callously assert. They are human beings in need of biological or adoptive parents.”

To read the entire article above, CLICK HERE.

Also read Obama Administration OKs Aborted Baby Brain Experiments

Actor Recants Embryonic Stem Cells for Parkinson's Cure

Hollywood celebrity Michael J. Fox, after helping Democrats like Sen. Claire McCaskill gain control of Congress in 2006 (and ultimately the White House in 2008) by hyping the promise that embryonic stem cell research would cure many of the worse diseases, now believes embryos are a virtual dead-end in that regard.

For background, read Stem Cell Hopes: Oprah & Michael J. Fox Ambushed and also read Stem Cell Science Advances Without Embryos as well as Embryonic Stem Cells Fail Where Other Research Advances

-- From "Michael J. Fox sidelines stem cells for Parkinson's" by Peter Aldhous, New Scientist 5/22/12

For years, actor Michael J. Fox was on the front line of the US's "stem cell wars", arguing that embryonic stem cells could cure conditions like his own – Parkinson's disease.

Last week Fox revealed he now believes that other lines of research hold more promise. "There have been some issues with stem cells, some problems along the way," Fox told ABC News. "An answer may come from stem cell research but it's more than likely to come from another area."

The Michael J. Fox Foundation, based in New York City, is still backing stem cell research, says its chief scientific adviser, Gene Johnson of Washington University in St Louis, but has shifted its emphasis in recent years. "Using stem cells as therapeutic agents is a very complicated business," Johnson says.

To read the entire article above, CLICK HERE.

From "Michael J. Fox Sees the Light on Embryonic Stem Cell Research" by Rebecca Taylor, LifeNews.com 5/23/12

This is no surprise for those of us who were paying attention during the stem cell frenzy of the last decade. We remember the irony that in 2006, Michael J. Fox endorsed Claire McCaskill, Missouri Democratic candidate for United States Senate.

Fox told viewers of a TV ad that McCaskill supported stem cell research that could provide a cure for his Parkinson’s disease. McCaskill, a Catholic, is an ardent champion of embryonic stem cell research.

To read the entire article above, CLICK HERE.

From "Michael J. Fox Admits Embryonic Stem Cells Likely Won’t Cure Him" by Steven Ertelt, LifeNews.com 5/18/12

“It’s not so much that [stem cell research has] diminished in its prospects for breakthroughs as much as it’s the other avenues of research have grown and multiplied and become as much or more promising. So, an answer may come from stem cell research but it’s more than likely to come from another area,” [Fox] said.

Fox is just the latest big research advocate to admit embryonic stem cells are not helping patients now and probably won’t any time in the near future. Earlier this year, Komen for the Cure quietly changed its position on funding agencies that are engaged in embryonic stem cell research.

More recently, Komen also released a new statement on embryonic stem cell research — saying such research shows “no promise” when it comes to finding cures or treatments for breast cancer. In fact, embryonic stem cells themselves have never been tried on human patients because of massive problems such as the formation of tumors and immune system rejection issues — whereas adult stem cells have helped patients dealing with more than 100 diseases or medical conditions.

To read the entire article above, CLICK HERE.

Obama Admin. OKs Aborted Baby Brain Experiments

President Obama's Food and Drug Administration has authorized StemCells, Inc. to use brain tissue from the remains of unborn children killed through abortion for clinical trials with more than a dozen patients to determine the effect on age-related macular degeneration of the eye.

Separately, President Obama's Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) has OKd the use of aborted babies to produce artificial flavor enhancers for PepsiCo products.

For background, read Obama Wins Ruling: Embryos will be Destroyed

-- From "Market Watch" (Wall Street Journal) 3/20/12

StemCells, Inc. is engaged in the research, development, and commercialization of cell-based therapeutics and tools for use in stem cell-based research and drug discovery. . . .

The Company is also conducting a Phase I/II clinical trial in chronic spinal cord injury in Switzerland and has received authorization from the FDA to initiate a Phase I/II clinical trial in dry age-related macular degeneration (AMD). In addition, the Company is pursuing preclinical studies of its HuCNS-SC cells in Alzheimer's disease. StemCells also markets stem cell research products, including media and reagents, under the SC Proven(R) brand.

To read the entire article above, CLICK HERE.

From "FDA permits use of fetal brain tissue in lab experiments" by John-Henry Westen, LifeSiteNews.com 3/16/12

The Food and Drug Administration has approved experiments using brain tissue from aborted unborn babies to treat macular degeneration. StemCells Inc. will inject fetal brain stem cells into the eyes of up to 16 patients to study the cells’ effect on vision.

In its press release announcing the clinical trial, StemCells Inc. was careful to refer to the fetal brain material as “purified human neural stem cell product” or HuCNS-SC cells, rather than “fresh human fetal brain tissue,” a description which can be found elsewhere on its website.

“StemCells Inc. is not using embryonic stem cells. A five-day-old human being at the embryonic stage does not have a brain, but a fetus at 10 or 20 weeks of development with visible fingers, toes and ears has a functioning brain,” said MCCL [Minnesota Citizens Concerned for Life] Executive Director Scott Fischbach. “Developing human beings in the womb are treated simply as raw material for laboratory experimentation by StemCells Inc. and other companies seeking to monetize aborted unborn children.”

The misleadingly-named Birth Defects Research Laboratory at the University of Washington in Seattle is known within the research community as a top government distributor of fetal tissue. The lab has been sponsored by the National Institutes of Health (NIH) for over four decades, according to a report in WORLD Magazine. The Puget Sound Business Journal stated that the lab “in 2009 filled more than 4,400 requests for fetal tissue and cell lines.”

To read the entire article above, CLICK HERE.

From "Obama Admin OKs Using Aborted Babies’ Brains in Lab Tests" by Steven Ertelt, LifeNews.com 3/16/12

Dr. David Prentice, an internationally recognized expert on stem cells and cloning, cites trials in which fetal stem cells have been used unsuccessfully to treat Parkinson’s disease. The New York Times called the outcome of a 2001 study “devastating” after “the patients writhed and jerked uncontrollably.” Another large clinical trial published in 2003 showed similar results.

“The use of morally illicit material in the biomedical industry violates the ‘do no harm’ principle that has governed the practice of medicine for millennia,” Fischbach said. “Adult stem cells offer the ethical and efficacious alternative. Unborn babies deserve dignity, not dissection and destruction.”

To read the entire article above, CLICK HERE.

UPDATE 3/28/12: PepsiCo denies accusations (below)

From "SEC Rules for PepsiCo’s Use of Aborted Fetal Cells" by Dave Bohon, The New American 3/8/12

As reported last year in The New American, the [PepsiCo] shareholders had filed a resolution with the SEC after Pepsi ignored tens of thousands of concerned pro-life individuals who had expressed their disgust and opposition to its contracting with Senomyx, a biotech company that tests its food additive products using a process that includes fetal cells from aborted babies.

In a decision delivered by letter February 28, the SEC said that Pepsi’s research and development agreement with Senomyx, which includes the use of aborted fetal remains in flavor enhancement research, falls under “ordinary business operations” for the soft drink company. According to LifeSiteNews.com, the SEC decision came in response to a 36-page document submitted by Pepsi through its attorneys in January 2012. “In that filing, PepsiCo pleaded with the SEC to reject the shareholders’ resolution filed in October 2011 that the company ‘adopt a corporate policy that recognizes human rights and employs ethical standards which do not involve using the remains of aborted human beings in both private and collaborative research and development agreements,’” reported the pro-life news site.

Debi Vinnedge of Children of God for Life, which had originally exposed the relationship between Pepsi and Senomyx, said that she was “appalled by the apathy and insensitivity” of PepsiCo and the Obama administration’s SEC. “We’re not talking about what kind of pencils PepsiCo wants to use,” she said in a statement. “We are talking about exploiting the remains of an aborted child for profit. Using human embryonic kidney to produce flavor enhancers for their beverages is a far cry from routine operations!”

To read the entire article above, CLICK HERE.

Also read Stem Cell Science Advances Without Embryos and see the list of related previous articles at the bottom of this posting.