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Because federally-funded human embryonic stem (hESC) research is limited and the derivation of new hESC lines is ineligible for federal funding, a number of private and public universities have established programs to pursue hESC research, including the derivation of new cell lines, using private funding. In addition, several states have enacted or are considering legislation to encourage the full spectrum of embryonic stem cell research.
The proliferation of new programs is taking place in the absence of guidelines for deriving, handling, and using embryonic stem cells. To address the urgent need for uniform procedures that take into account important scientific, ethical, and policy issues related to this emerging area, the National Academies established the Committee on Guidelines for Human Embryonic Stem Cell Research.
This project was conducted jointly with the National Research Council's Board on Life Sciences.
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