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Boston Researchers Create Human Clone Embryo For Research

NEW YORK, December 17, 2003 (LifeSiteNews.com) - Researchers at a small Boston area biotech company have created a human embryo clone which has survived to the 16 cell stage, the stage at which cells can be harvested for stem cell research. WIRED magazine reports in its January issue to be released next Tuesday, Wendy Goldman Rohm witnessed the breakthrough experiment which in pursuit of stem cells yielded both human clone embryos and human parthenotes, embryo-like balls of cells that have only one set of chromosomes.

The company, Advanced Cell Technology (ACT) of Worcester, Massachusetts, has been involved with human cloning for some time. In 2001, company researchers grew human clone embryos to six cells. Since then, there have been no published reports of human clone embryos surviving more than a few cell divisions.

The experiment indicates that science has reached a point where human reproductive cloning may be possible. During in vitro fertilization, two-day old embryos are commonly implanted in the 100,000 procedures done every year in the U.S. In this case, ACT's embryo survived for at least five days. This raises the question of whether the cloned embryo could have been implanted successfully in a surrogate womb.

WIRED was granted access into the ACT lab to witness the first seven days of the experiment. Goldman Rohm's article is a step-by-step report, beginning with 18 eggs harvested from two egg donors who had been taking fertility drugs, and ending with ACT attempting to derive stem cells from the parthenotes.

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