Scientist Clarifies Stem Cells, Embryos and Research

SALT LAKE CITY - Feb. 17, 2014 - PRLog -- As science progresses in the field of stem cell research, there is considerable confusion, both within the scientific community and in the general public, about what is, and what is not a human embryo.

The upcoming issue of the globally recognized journal, Stem Cells and Development, will include a unique piece by Dr. Maureen L. Condic that Bioethics Defense Fund president Nikolas T. Nikas says will "help researchers and policy makers alike to clarify the factual issues as to what is and is not a human embryo, so that we can squarely address the moral issues about the protection our society owes to a member of our species."

The article entitled, "Totipotency: What it is and what it isn't," address these questions among others: Are stem cells embryos, as some have claimed?  Do we need to worry about reprogramming accidentally going "too far" and producing embryos in the laboratory?  What about human cloning?  What about human twinning?

BDF senior counsel Dorinda C. Bordlee said, "This is a rigorous analysis by Dr. Condic, a scientist and professor in the department of neurobiology at the University of Utah School of Medicine, yet it is written in plain language that can be understood by the educated non-scientist."

Interested citizens including researchers, policy makers, educators and students can freely download the full journal article to read, forward and post using the following link.

Download the full paper for free: http://online.liebertpub.com/doi/abs/10.1089/scd.2013.0364


MEDIA:  Requests to interview Dr. Maureen Condic can be made by contacting Dorinda Bordlee, (504) 231-7234; dbordlee@bdfund.org.