Proposed stem cell bill divides Republicans
Some lawmakers support federal funding of research on embryos
By Pete Williams
Justice correspondent
NBC News
Updated: 7:32 p.m. ET May 19, 2005

WASHINGTON - The same Republican-controlled Congress that two months ago passed an emergency pro-life law for the parents of Terri Schiavo is now on the verge of voting to allow federal funding of research on stem cells derived from human embryos, something most on the anti-abortion side oppose.

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And this time, the drive is coming from moderate Republicans who say frozen embryos now held at fertility clinics would otherwise be discarded.

"At some point the decision is made to dispose of the embryos," says Rep. Michael Castle, R-Del. "They're not going to be used in the process anymore, and in that case it either becomes hospital waste or it's going to be used for research if our bill passes."

Like-minded Republicans are behind new TV ads, such as one featuring a parent saying, "Owen is my 2-and-a-half year-old son. He has a genetic disease called SMA. Stem cells really do offer the best promise."

But the issue deeply divides Republicans. Conservatives strongly oppose opening up stem cell funding.

"I think it's morally wrong to take the tax dollars of millions of pro-life Americans and use it to fund research that they find morally objectionable," says Rep. Michael Pence, R-Ind.

Their view got a boost this week in a letter from the Catholic Church calling embryonic research "destructive and morally offensive."

But the issue doesn't divide neatly along the usual lines of abortion politics. Even some anti-abortion Republicans, like Utah Sen. Orrin Hatch, say they'll support expanded stem cell research funding.

"It would be a lot better to utilize them for the benefit of mankind — to alleviate pain, suffering and disease," says Hatch. "And I think anybody who really looks at it has got to say, 'you know, that's pro-life too."

Both sides say increased funding may well pass Congress. It would then be up to President Bush to use his first veto to block it — and opponents of the law are confident he will.

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Section in bold is a huge LOL

Meanwhile South Korea moves on with stem cell harvesting.

Like it or not stem cells are the future of medicine. If you don't want to be buying all your medicine from South Korea (or China?) then I'd suggest jumping aboard the bandwagon.

Appealing to people's health doesn't quite work, maybe people'll care about their wallets.

I think it's morally wrong to take the tax dollars of millions of anti-war Americans and use them to fund a war that they find morally objectionable.

Hey wasn't there an article on that they found that you can get stem cells from hair? Whats up with that? I mean if that is possible then end of debate! There is basically a never ending supply of hair...and completely ethical. *shrugs*

Skin, too. Unfortunately the spin machine has it pounded into people's heads that stem cells = scientists sitting around and killing babies.

Yeah, this is why that argument sucks, you can never make everyone happy with government policy, and some segment of the population will find something you do to be morally objectionable. The better question to ask: is it the best interest of the country and is it constitutional?

Adult stem cells are useful for some things, but embryonic stem cells show much more potential.

Definitely. Adult stem cells are usually already highly developed and going to become skin, hair, etc. There is a lot less that can be accomplished with them, as their ultimate function has already been established.

this gets a round of applause.

Yeah, the point is I think that the embryonic cells haven't already been conditioned to be skin, hair or anything else yet. It's the purity of the material that allows for the most flexibility into making it do what you need it to do.

I'm pretty sure I'm not only guy here for whom balding is an issue. I had a spot by time I was 25 and it's only grown since I've crossed into my 30s. I buzz cut it and I'm fine with it but would love to have a full head of hair again

Balding may be a stem cell problem
If you're a guy who's lost a lot of hair, there may be hope in getting it back, via stem cells.

New research in the Journal of Clinical Investigation suggests that male-pattern baldness may result from stem cells in the scalp failing to give rise to progenitor cells, which are responsible for growing hair.

That means that a potential treatment could make use of stem cells to grow new hair, researchers say.

"Even in a bald scalp, there are stem cells there that you could activate to get new hair," said Dr. George Cotsarelis, chair of the Department of Dermatology at the University of Pennsylvania School of Medicine and lead study author.

Hair follicles normally go through a period during which the hair can become several feet long. In baldness, that period decreases dramatically.

In a man who has a bald area on the scalp, there are still follicles present, but they are essentially microscopic – making hairs that are not even visible.

Cotsarelis and colleagues found that bald areas of men's scalps had a normal amount of stem cells, but were deficient in progenitor cells, which generate hair.

The study suggests that if scientists can figure out the signals involved in getting stem cells to produce a hair, and focus on the process of stem cells leading to progenitor cells, they may be able to come up with a re-growth treatment.

Keep in mind, however, that this study was done only in men. Women can also experience hair loss, but the stem cell phenomenon has not been studied in this detail with the female scalp yet.

This is the latest development toward an understanding of baldness, but not the only recent one. Last year, scientists identified a gene that affects hair growth.