Stem Cell Test Tried on Mice Saves Embryo

October 17, 2005 | Source: New York Times

Scientists have devised two new techniques to derive embryonic stem cells in mice, one of which avoids the destruction of the embryo, a development that could have the potential to shift the grounds of the longstanding political debate about human stem cell research.

The second new technique manipulates embryos so they are inherently incapable of implanting in the uterus, a possible ethical advantage in the proposed therapy.

Both methods are described in today’s online edition of Nature.