Legal disputes over adult and embryonic stem cell research

July 12, 2010

A report from the European Science Foundation (ESF) released last month examines key issues in human stem cell research and regenerative medicine, which it hails as having the promise to be ‘one of the most fascinating and controversial scientific developments of the 21st century’. Regulation of stem cell research varies widely between different European countries: some prohibit human embryonic stem (HES) cell research; seven permit the production of human stem cells from spare in vitro fertilisation (IVF) embryos; three (the UK, Belgium and Sweden) allow the creation of embryos purely for research, albeit under strict regulation; and six have no legislative policies at all. (PHG Foundation)