UK policy on cloning
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This is a digitised version of an article from The Cayman Compass's print archive. Occasionally, the digitisation process introduces transcription errors, or other problems.
See the article in its original context from December 1998.
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The experts were asked in January to advise on the legal and ethical implications of the technology after Scottish scientists created the world's first cloned mammal, Dolly the sheep, by cloning a cell from an adult sheep in 1996. British law bans human reproductivecloning whereby the genetic information in an egg is replaced with that from another cell and then reinserted in the womb and restricts research conducted on human embryos for medical purposes.
Embryos less than 14 days old may only be used for research into the treatment of infertility and congenital disease, but research cannot be aimed at developing replacement tissue. The scientists at the Human Fertilization and Embryology Authority and the Human Genetics Advisory Committee advised that the purposes for which research can be carried out be extended to include tissue growth, and suggested policy should be reviewed in five years time.
That recommendation followed research from the United States where scientists have succeeded in isolating and growing cultures of human embryonic stem cells the undeveloped "parents" of all the tissues in the body. It is hoped this could lead to the growth of replacement tissue in laboratories from cells taken from patients, avoiding the problems of transplant rejection.
The recommendations drew praise from other scientists, but condemnation from those who fear cloning for medical treatment will inevitably lead to the creation of identical copies of human beings. Dr. Harry Griffin, assistant director at the Roslin Institute in Edinburgh which created Dolly, applauded the report's position rejecting reproductive cloning.
"We are also pleased that the report recognises that there are other applications of cloning in human medicine that have great potential to benefit mankind," he said. " Theuseofcloningincelltherapy promises to provide radical new treatments for a number of common diseases like Parkinson's, diabetes and strokes."
But Patrick Dixon, author of "Futurewise," a book which warns of the dangers of unrestrained research, said: "This is the perfect Christmas present for those who want to press ahead with human cloning." He called for an international moratorium on such research.
The government will respond to the report early next year, the Health Department said. Last week, U.N. officials called for a universal code of ethics for cloning and genetic engineering.
In the United States, a five-year moratorium announced by President Bill Clinton to ban cloning has apparently been observed by most mainstream scientists, although Congress has failed to act on the legislation.
