State lawmakers could be taking a vote soon on embryonic stem cell research. And there are some who want to make sure that full-fledged human cloning doesn’t inadvertently get the green light, according to WWJ Lansing Bureau Chief Tim Skubick. (WWJ Newsradio 950)

Bioethics (Volume 24, Issue 2, February 2010) is now available by subscription only.

Articles include:

• “Are Recent Defences of the Brain Death Concept Adequate?” by Ari Joffe, 47-53.
• “Ethical Debate Over Organ Donation in the Context of Brain Death” by Mary Jiang Bresnahan and Kevin Mahler, 54-60.
• “Could a Zygote by a Human Being?” by John Burgess, 61-70.
• “Human Reproductive Cloning: A Conflict of Liberties” by Joyce C. Havstad, 71-77.
• “Living to the Bitter End? A Personalist Approach to Euthanasia in Persons with Severe Dementia” by Chris Gasmans and Jan De Lepeleire, 78-86.
• “Patient Autonomy, Assessment of Competence and Surrogate Decision-Making: A Call for Reasonableness in Deciding for Others” by KRISTINE BÆRØE, 87-95.

BioSocieties (Volume 4, Issue 04, December 2009) is now available by subscription only.

Articles include:

• “Informed Consent in Forensic DNA Databases: Volunteering, Constructions of Risk and Identity Categorization” by Helena Machado and Susana Silva, 335-348.
• “Models of Cloning, Models for the Zoo: Rethinking the Sociological Significance of Cloned Animals” by Carrie Friese, 367-390.
• “The Practice of Genetic Counselling- A Comparative Approach to Understanding Genetic Counselling in China” by Suli Sui, 391-405.
• “Changing Brains: The Emergence of the Field of Adult Neurogenesis” by Beatrix P. Rubin, 407-424.
• “The Cerebral Subject and the Challenge of Neurodiversity” by Francisco Ortega, 425-445.

It may still seem to be in the realm of science fiction, but nearly half of Americans believe cloning organs will be routine by 2020, according to a new poll. (Reuters)

Humanity has always longed to possess the regenerative powers of other living things. The Mexican walking fish can regrow a severed limb, and if you cut the freshwater hydra into pieces, each will become a new creature.

The idea of possessing such powers is the stuff of ancient myths and science fiction. But with a new technique known as cell reprogramming, the reality may be soon upon us. (The Age)

Three years after embryonic stem cell cloning was legalised in Australia, advocates are finally facing up to the critical issue: where will all the eggs come from? Cloning or somatic cell nuclear transfer (SCNT) is impossible without a continuous – and large - supply of women’s ova. In South Korea, the now discredited Dr Hwang used 2061 eggs taken from 169 women and failed to produce a single cloned embryo. (WA Today)

A liberal scientific take on cloning says it represents a process which will, in time, allow scientists to create organs that are a perfect match for those in need of a transplant. The cloned organ would be based on the recipient’s genetic material and would not require the use of debilitating therapies in order to suppress the individual’s immune system. There would also be no chance of rejection, which is almost always fatal. Therapeutic cloning therefore symbolises the ideal in organ transplantation as it would provide an unlimited source of replacement organs to anyone who needs them. (The Economic Times)

Despite his research being exposed as fraudulent and unethical almost four years ago, the career of South Korean cloner Woo Suk Hwang has thrived. He has established a research institute, laid claim to a set of human-cloning patents, received a scientific excellence award, published a handful of papers and entered into a collaboration with a powerful provincial government. (Nature News)

THE SWIRL of controversy that greeted President Obama’s executive order lifting the ban on federal funding of stem cell research in March didn’t make a significant return when the final rules were released over the summer. That’s because the National Institutes of Health successfully navigated a minefield of ethical and moral questions. To protect those regulations from politics and changes by another administration, Rep. Diana DeGette (D-Colo.) soon will introduce the Stem Cell Research Enhancement Act of 2009. The legislation would codify Mr. Obama’s executive order permitting federal funding of such research within guidelines established by the NIH and would require that they be reviewed periodically. (Washington Post)

An upcoming bill — the Stem Cell Research Enhancement Act of 2009, by Rep. Diana DeGette (D-Colo.) — would codify President Obama’s executive order “permitting federal funding of such research within guidelines established by the NIH and would require that they be reviewed periodically,” a Washington Post editorial states. (Medical News Today)

Human clones, it is widely assumed, would be monstrous perversions of nature. Yet chances are, you already know one. Indeed, you may know several and even have dated a clone. They walk among us in the form of identical twins: people who share exact sets of DNA. Such twins almost always look alike and often have similar quirks. But their minds, experiences, and personalities are different, and no one supposes they are less than fully human. And if identical twins are fully human, wouldn’t cloned people be as well? (Wired)

Health Minister Ghulam Nabi Azad Friday urged the scientists to tap the potential of therapeutic cloning to heal and regenerate damaged body parts and find treatment for complex medical problems. (Hindustan Times)

Tens of thousands of samples of human tissue will be offered for use in controversial human/animal hybrid embryo research without the consent of the patients who donated them. (Telegraph)

16th Session of the International Bioethics Committee of UNESCO

Further to its postponement for health reasons related to the A(H1N1) influenza epidemic in Mexico City, the Sixteenth (ordinary) Session of the International Bioethics Committee of UNESCO (IBC) (initially scheduled in May 2009) will now be held in Mexico City, from 23 to 25 November 2009.

Created in 1993, IBC is a body of 36 independent experts – appointed by the Director-General of UNESCO in their personal capacity - that follows progress in the life sciences and its applications in order to ensure respect for human dignity and freedom.

As initially scheduled, two main topics will be discussed during this session:  the principle of social responsibility and health as set forth in Article 14 of the UNESCO Universal Declaration on Bioethics and Human Rights (2005) and the issue ofhuman cloning and international governance.  IBC will finalize its work on article 14 of the Declaration and will hold a first reflection on the follow up to be given to its Report on Human Cloning and International Governance.

Moreover, since the session will take place in the Latin American and Caribbean region, an entire day will be devoted to“Bioethics in Latin America and the Caribbean:  Experiences and perspectives”.  The working session will focus on the following themes:

• Bioethical debate and public awareness: Latin American perspective
• Legislative measures in Latin America and the Caribbean:  which implementation for the UNESCO Declarations in the field of bioethics?
• Bioethics education:  experiences in Latin America and the Caribbean
• National bioethics committees in Latin America and the Caribbean: challenges and perspectives.

Finally IBC will finalize its work programme for 2010-2011 and will elect its new Bureau.

The sessions are open to the public. The working languages will be English and French. Simultaneous interpretation will be provided in these languages as well as in Spanish.

There is no registration fee.  However, as is customary, the travel and living expenses of observers will be borne by them or by the Organization they represent.

If you wish to participate in this meeting as an observer, please go to the following website: www.unesco.org/bioethics and fill out the registration form which should be returned, duly completed, to the IBC Secretariat (by surface mail: Division of the Ethics of Science and Technology, 1 rue Miollis – 75015 Paris; or by fax: + 33 1 45 68 55 15; or by e-mail: ibc@unesco.org),before 18 November 2009.

Further information and working documents are available on the above-mentioned website and upon request from:

IBC Secretariat
Division of Ethics of Science and Technology

UNESCO
1, rue Miollis
75732 Paris Cedex 15 - France
Telephone: + 33 1 45 68 44 28 /38 03
Fax: + 33 1 45 68 55 15
E-mail: ibc@unesco.org

The prospect of replication of human beings through genetic manipulation has engendered one of the most controversial debates about reproduction in our society. Ideology is clearly influencing the direction of research and legislation on human cloning, which may present one of the greatest existential challenges to the meaning of creation. In this article, I argue that, in view of the possibility that human cloning and other emerging technologies could enhance physical and cognitive abilities, there is a need for a different way of thinking about life, new technologies and creation. New scientific discoveries require a shift in the way psychology takes responsibility to help individuals and society. Today, psychology needs to follow the progress that humans are taking toward a transhuman stage of development as a transition to a later posthuman stage. (Journal of Evolution and Technology)

One of the world’s first two cloned wolves has died from an apparent infection, a professor who produced the clones almost four years ago said Tuesday. (PhysOrg)

Many couples are faced with the unpleasant choice between not having a child of their own and risking the passing on of a debilitating disease. Yet research into reproductive technologies to lessen the chances of having unhealthy babies has been hampered by public attitudes to interfering with the course of life. (Nature)

A long-sought loosening of Japan’s guidelines on human embryonic stem-cell research came into effect on 21 August. But some say the new rules are too little, too late for a struggling field that was once a source of national pride. (Nature News)

A South Korean biotechnology firm will early next year open a centre capable eventually of producing up to 1,000 cloned dogs annually, a company executive said Friday. (PhysOrg)

Chinese scientists have bred mice from cells that might offer an alternative to human embryonic stem cells, producing the most definitive evidence yet that the technique could help sidestep many of the explosive ethical issues engulfing the controversial field but raising alarm that the advance could lead to human cloning and designer babies. (Washington Post)

Preimplantation genetic diagnosis (PGD) has helped many couples conceive healthy children and is generally considered a safe practice. However, a new long-term analysis of PGD in mice suggests that this procedure may increase risks of weight gain and memory decline in adulthood. (Nature News)