Ban ends on part-human, part-animal embryo research

British stem cell scientists are celebrating after a ban has been lifted to create part-human, part-animal embryos for medical research.

The Human Fertilisation and Embryology Authority ruled that scientists should be allowed to create controversial embryos in order to further investigate medical conditions such as Alzheimer's disease, Parkinson's and motor neurone disease.

Cybrid embryos, as they are named, are created by inserting human DNA into an empty animal egg, where it is allowed to grow for a few days until stem cells can be collected. These cells will carry the genetic defects that trigger certain diseases and can be used to investigate these medical conditions in their earliest stages.

Under exisiting law, the embryos cannot be implanted into a womb and must be destroyed after 14 days, when they are a ball of cells no bigger than a pin head. The research has been heavily oppsed by anti-abortion and religious groups.

Thanks to The Guardian 05/09/07

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