The National Institutes of Health this week ordered all of its researchers to immediately halt any experiments using human embryonic stem cells following a federal injunction. U.S. District Judge Royce Lamberth ruled last week that the research violated a law forbidding the government from funding any research involving the destruction of human embryos.
Dr. Ross was disappointed with the judge’s ruling and hopes it will be overturned. “The law has been interpreted since 1999 to mean that research on stem cells already in existence can continue,” he says. “If the cells are already present, working on them or not has nothing to do with the destruction of embryos. The new restriction will have the effect of halting all research involving embryonic stem cells in government-funded labs, since future funding is now uncertain at best.”
The Justice Department is appealing the ruling, arguing the NIH has invested $546 million in stem cell research since 2001 and the experiments could take years to recreate. “Investigators who have devoted their careers to this exciting area of research may have to close their laboratories or move to another country,” NIH Director Dr. Francis S. Collins said in a legal declaration.
The research being funded includes using stem cells to replace liver transplantation and to treat neurodegenerative diseases like Parkinson’s and ALS (Lou Gehrig’s Disease).