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Stem-Cell Group Seeks More Cooperation in Research

Posted on: Friday, 13 January 2006, 14:45 CST

By Paul Carrel

PARIS -- Stem-cell scientists must cooperate more with colleagues in other countries to reduce the risk of further flawed findings after a case of faked results in South Korea, a research group said on Friday.

Stem-cell research was thrust into the international limelight last month when a panel from Seoul National University said results in a landmark paper on stem cells by top South Korean scientist Hwang Woo-suk had been fabricated.

The International Stem Cell Forum (ISCF) said that despite this, stem-cell research itself was not problematic.

"If one thinks about how the situation in South Korea could have been avoided, the key must surely have been collaboration, exchange of information and openness," ISCF Chairman Colin Blakemore told reporters after the forum met in Paris.

Members of the ISCF include medical and research groups from 17 countries. South Korea is not a member, but the group said its members were ready to work with South Korean researchers.

Hwang's stem-cell research had raised hopes for those suffering from debilitating and deadly diseases because it seemed to hasten the day when genetically specific tissue could be grown to help repair damaged bodies.

CONFIDENCE

The South Korean scandal has shaken confidence in stem-cell research.

"There is no doubt that is has given a very bad impression of science," Blakemore, who is also chief executive of Britain's Medical Research Council, said.

"But it is important to emphasize that that problem -- the problem of fraud and misrepresentation in science -- is a generic problem, it could apply in any area of science.

"If this had been fraud in the area of research in chemistry, would it mean that research in chemistry was itself unethical? Of course not," he said.

Stem cells are the body's master cells, used to continually regenerate tissues, organs and blood. Those taken from days-old embryos are considered the most versatile. They can produce any kind of tissue in the body.

Doctors hope to one day use embryonic stem cells as a source of perfectly matched transplants to treat diseases such as cancer and Parkinson's and some injuries. Biologists want to study them to understand the basic causes of disease and development.

Some, including U.S. President George W. Bush, object to the destruction of or experimentation on a human embryo.

The Roman Catholic Church opposes stem-cell research which extracts useful cells from unused embryos left over from fertility treatments. The United States Congress is debating whether to expand federal funding for this kind of research.

Source: REUTERS

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