Embryonic Stem Cells, Without the Embryo

The Washington Post has an interesting article on recent research into embryonic stem cells which may indicate that they can be made without the embryo.

Yet the gathering consensus among biologists is that embryonic stem cells are made, not born -- and that embryos are not an essential ingredient. That means that today's heated debates over embryo rights could fade in the aftermath of technical advances allowing scientists to convert ordinary cells into embryonic stem cells.

"That would really get around all the moral and ethical concerns," said James F. Battey, chief of the stem cell task force at the National Institutes of Health. The techniques under study qualify for federal grant support because embryos are not harmed, he noted. And eventually the work could boost the number of stem cell colonies, or lines, available for study by taxpayer-supported researchers.

So perhaps it is possible to have one's cake and eat it too. We can have the embryonic stem cells without the moral objections.