If you’ve been paying attention to the stem cell world, you’ll remember Woo Suk Hwang, who nearly derailed the future of stem cell research by very publically proclaiming that he had made human embryonic stem cells by somatic cell nuclear transfer (SCNT). No, this has nothing to do with Shoukhrat Mitalipov’s report of successful generation […]
Jeanne Loring on Woo Suk Hwang Approved Patent of SCNT ESCs Read More »
There have been many interesting developments in stem cells in 2013, but to me the biggest event by far was the first ever successful somatic cell nuclear transfer (SCNT)-based human therapeutic cloning. This approach generated apparently genetically normal human embryonic stem cells (hESC), an astonishing accomplishment. There are two kinds of human cloning: therapeutic and reproductive.
Stem cell story of the year: human therapeutic cloning Read More »
De-extinction is big right now and some of the extinct target creatures are big too like the woolly mammoth. “Let’s bring back these extinct creatures”, say proponents. Wouldn’t it be cool? I have to admit seeing a woolly mammoth, mastodon, or saber tooth tiger would be cool, but such efforts would not be without consequences
Why I oppose de-extinction of woolly mammoths Read More »
In late 2010, Nicholas Wade, then a frequent science writer for the New York Times, wrote a frankly nasty piece on the stem cell field that was insulting and oversimplistic. Now today we have yet another piece in the NYT by Wade on stem cells, and he mostly makes a mess of it again, with
Nicholas Wade of the New York Times again Misses the Stem Cell Boat Read More »
There is a lot of talk about cloning celebrities so could we be seeing John Lennon again in the form of a clone? If a Canadian dentist named Michael Zuk has his way, the late Beatle may be back. In his quest to get back Lennon, Zuk reportedly purchased an old molar that once had
Imagine Cloning John Lennon From Old Molar Read More »
People have been confused about human cloning issues in the last few weeks on a number of levels. The confusion has come along with the excitement, concern, and increased interest in cloning lately since the lab of Dr. Shoukhrat Mitalipov reported a few weeks back in Cell the astonishing feat of successful human embryonic stem
Why Shoukhrat Mitalipov opposes human cloning Read More »
A few days ago I started a poll on the Mitalipov lab’s human cloning paper in Cell and how people felt about the mistakes in the paper. Are these mistakes a big deal or more just minor glitches? Or somewhere in the middle? Based on the poll so far with 87 respondents, readers of this
Human cloning Cell paper poll: significant uncertainty remains Read More »
Occasionally I call out a particularly important comment by a reader on a major issue and today it is commenter Natalie DeWitt (see my earlier interview with her about her experiences at Nature’s The Niche) who has contributed a particularly insightful, knowledgable comment on my recent perspective piece the Cell cloning paper mishap. Many in the
Natalie DeWitt Must-Read Comment on Cell Cloning Paper Mishap Read More »
Is it really deja vu all over again with allegations of potential wrongdoing in a paper on human cloning? “Say it isn’t so!”, is basically the universal reaction I’m getting from people in the stem cell field. Well, sadly it seems to be so folks. What’s going on? Allegations have emerged on a website called
Human cloning Cell paper under investigation: some perspectives Read More »
We had the big news last week that for the first time ever, human embryo cloning (aka “therapeutic cloning”) worked to produce apparently normal embryonic stem cells. I posted about it a few times here, here, and here. I have tried my best to be factual, open minded, and realistic about the issues. Frankly, the
Stem cell field stumbles on cloning dialogue Read More »