Targeting
Minority
Embryos
Two recent papers–one published online by the New England Journal of
Medicine and one just published in Nature Methods–analyzed the genetic
ethnic diversity of some of the existing human embryonic stem cell
(hESC) lines. One group examined 47 hESC lines, while another checked
42 hESC lines; there were 9 lines that both groups checked, for a total
of 80 different lines investigated, including some of the most-used
hESC lines and some of the few newly-approved hESC lines.
Not surprisingly, they found that most of the hESC lines represent a
limited genetic ethnic diversity, primarily from European and Middle
Eastern, as well as some East Asian, descent. The University of
Michigan group seems to think this is surprising, but in truth it is
not surprising and has been noted for years.
Why is this lack of genetic diversity not surprising? Thus far, the
embryos destroyed for hESC lines are all taken from in vitro
fertilization (IVF) clinics. As many have pointed out for years
regarding the hESC lines, the IVF technique is expensive, so the sample
is self-selected for those who can afford the IVF practice. The sample
is further restricted to those parents who are willing to sacrifice
their so-called “leftover” embryos to science. They also found that
more than one cell line came from the same embryo donors; again, common
sense would have indicated that given the selection, this would be the
case.
Perhaps the Michigan group was simply naive regarding their
expectations of wider genetic ethnic diversity in the hESC lines. The
source of the embryos is sometimes actually given in the published hESC
papers, e.g., Thomson’s original 1998 paper noted “IVF clinics at the
University of Wisconsin School of Medicine and at the Rambam Medical
Center”; and four of the five original lines did indeed come from
Israeli embryos.
A 2003 publication discussing a potential American embryonic stem cell
bank noted that
“The existing human embryonic stem cell lines will not be sufficient to
allow for equitable biological access” and “Unless the problem of
biological access is carefully addressed, an American stem cell bank
may benefit white Americans to the relative exclusion of the rest of
the population.”
Of course, their proposed solution at that time was to use SCNT
cloning, or to recruit gamete donors so that embryos could be
manufactured specifically for use in hESC harvesting.
Another group in 2005 noted the same problems:
“However, because of their rarity, the chance of researchers
fortuitously obtaining the relevant homozygous hES-cell lines needed
for such a bank from in vitro fertilisation clinics is very low”
and suggested the same solutions–cloning embryos or soliciting gamete
donors for specific creation of embryos to derive the desired hESC
lines.
And another group in 2006 stated that for good matching in a U.S.
embryonic stem cell bank
“many thousands of hESC lines would need to be available” and “the
current hESC lines were obtained from only a few localities and thus
are unlikely to reflect the ethnic diversity of the U.S. population
pool.”
Of course, it’s also not a surprise that the embryonic stem cell
researchers want more embryos, especially minority embryos, from whom
to wring their embryonic stem cells. It’s never enough with some of
these people. Supposedly having at their disposal several hundred new
hESC lines was satisfactory, plus the open-ended promise from President
Obama of as many fertility-clinic embryos as they would like. But
Michigan’s Sean Morrison
“will also make it a priority to derive new embryonic stem cell lines
from underrepresented groups, including African-Americans.”
So, apparently Prof. Morrison is going to be stalking minority couples
at IVF clinics, targeting their embryos for his lab. Or soliciting egg
and sperm donors to create custom-made embryos specifically for the
experiments. Or trying to make cloning work. All of this is legal in
the U.S. But not all of this can garner federal taxpayer dollars. The
next step, already propounded in a Detroit Free Press editorial
(complete with the usual hype about “potential” embryonic stem cell
medicine), is to do away with any federal limits on the use of taxpayer
funds for human embryo research.
There are easier, better, and already-fundable routes, of course. One
is creation of new iPS cell (induced pluripotent stem cell) lines,
which can be created directly from virtually any tissue of any person.
Morrison mentions this in passing in his paper, but Laurent et al.
actually analyze several human iPS cell lines, and point out:
“In fact, given that hiPSCs can be generated from hematopoietic stem
cells (HSCs) isolated from human cord blood, existing cord blood banks
could become a valuable source of ethnically diverse cells for
reprogramming into hiPSCs.”
But a real way to address social justice in the stem cell realm would
be to focus on making more adult stem cell treatments available to
patients. Such as treatments for sickle cell anemia, including for
adult sickle-cell patients, and treatments for multiple sclerosis, and
spinal cord injury. Focus on the patients first.
Contact: David
Prentice
Source:
FRC Blog
Publish
Date:
December 31, 2009
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