Stem Cells from Amniotic Fluid -- Pro-Lifers Hope Speaker Pelosi is Listening
by Jody Brown
January 9, 2007
(AgapePress) - - An announcement on Sunday from researchers with two prestigious U.S. universities could influence legislation expected to be introduced during this congressional session in the House of Representatives -- at least pro-lifers are hopeful that is the case. The researchers report they have found a plentiful source of stem cells in amniotic fluid.According to press reports, researchers from Harvard University Medical School and Wake Forest University School of Medicine say the stem cells they obtained from amniotic fluid -- the fluid that cushions a baby in its mother's womb -- hold much the same promise as embryonic stem cells. Pro-life advocates have opposed embryonic stem-cell research (ESCR) because it involves destruction of unborn babies.
But according to Sunday's announcement -- reported by the researchers in the scientific journal Nature Biotechnology as well -- "amniotic fluid-derived stem" (AFS) cells, as they call them, can be extracted without harm to either the mother or the baby. And they say they have used those cells to create muscle, bone, fat, blood vessel, nerve, and liver cells in the laboratory. Preliminary tests in human patients, however, are years away, they note. (See related press release)
AFS cells, the researchers explain, may represent an intermediate stage between embryonic stem cells and adult stem cells. Wake Forest University's Dr. Anthony Atala, the project's senior researcher, explained on Sunday that the cells are "capable of extensive self-renewal," which is a defining property of stem cells, and can be used to produce a "broad range of cells that may be valuable for therapy."
In light of this announcement, representatives with numerous pro-life Christian groups are urging newly installed Speaker of the House Nancy Pelosi not to move forward with plans to fund embryonic stem-cell research. A measure calling for such funding is due for consideration by the House on Thursday (January 11) -- H.R. 3, which would use tax dollars to fund research on human embryos that are "left over" from in vitro fertilization.
Will Democrats' Cry for 'Ethical Standards' Come Into Play?
Rev. Patrick Mahoney with the National Clergy Council is hoping Nancy Pelosi is paying attention to the research being conducted by Atala and others at Harvard and Wake Forest. "Based upon this stunning new revelation, we strongly recommend that Speaker Nancy Pelosi refrain from moving forward in her plans to fund the highly controversial embryonic stem-cell research," he says in a press release.
Joining in that call are several other pro-life organizations. National Right to Life says it would be "simply unethical" to mandate federal funding of research that requires the killing of human embryos. NRLC's legislative director is urging Congress to support ethical alternatives, such as that announced by Atala.
Wendy Wright | |
Concerned Women for America's Wendy Wright says this latest research is further evidence that one life does not have to be destroyed to save another. "Amniotic cells are proven to be as effective as embryonic stem cells, without posing ... ethical dilemmas [inherent to that research] or threatening risks to patients of causing tumors," she points out. "Scientific research proves that the moral choice is also the healthiest and most effective way to find cures."The CWA president also expresses her hope that the 110th Congress will begin to show how serious it is about ethics by voting down H.R. 3, which she describes as a "dangerous bill that forces Americans to pay for experiments that destroy the most vulnerable human lives."
Tony Perkins, president of the Family Research Council in Washington, DC, also addresses the Democrats' professed attention to ethics while in the majority on Capitol Hill.
"If [the House leadership] truly care[s] about setting ethical standards, then they should abandon their quest to subsidize unethical research and concentrate on research that cures without killing," says Perkins in his Monday Washington Update. "As viable and ethical alternatives to destructive embryonic stem-cell research grow, so too should opposition on Capitol Hill to taxpayer-funded research that destroys human embryos."
Troy Newman with Operation Rescue sees not just the benefit of holding off on legislation that would throw tax dollars at anti-family research, but also the opportunity that AFS cells would offer over stem cells harvested at the expense of human embryos. "This new science has been able to isolate every type of stem cell needed for therapy and healing medicine without the moral concern for loss of innocent life that has alarmed Christians," says Newman.
Rev. Mahoney agrees. "It gives science the opportunity to move forward without the moral and ethical objections now associated with live human embryonic experimentation," he says.
Indeed, AFS cells appear to hold great promise, according to Dr. Atala. He explains that in addition to being easily -- and safely -- attainable, the cells can be grown in large quantities, they do not require guidance from "feeder" cells, and they do not produce tumors, which he says can occur with certain other types of stem cells.
"The full range of cells that AFS cells can give rise to remains to be determined," the researcher says. "So far, we've been successful with every cell type we've attempted to produce from these stem cells." The findings reported by the research team come after seven years of research, he pointed out.
