Sydney IVF produces stem cells

Fertility clinic Sydney IVF has obtained stem cells from an Australian embryo, which it will make available to stem cell researchers.

The result comes only a few months after the company was granted a licence by the National Health and Medical Research Council's embryo research licensing committee, allowing it to use human embryos no longer required for in vitro fertilisation (IVF) purposes in research.

Sydney IVF's medical director, Prof Robert Jansen, said the speed with which the research team was able to derive the stem cells was probably due to the quality of the embryos.

"Our embryos are at the five-day blastocyst stage, a stage comprising over 100 cells," Jensen said. "Most programs abroad have problems because they use embryos that are younger than this. We do all our manipulations, such as genetic testing and freezing, at this late stage and have a survival rate over 90 per cent."

The five-day blastocyst has two layers of cells -- a trophoderm, consisting of placental stem cells, and an inner cell mass, which contains the embryonic stem cells.

Human embryonic stem cells have the ability to differentiate into any adult cell type, providing potential for the development of cell-based treatments for diseases such as Parkinson's disease, diabetes and multiple sclerosis. Sydney IVF also plans to use the embryonic stem cells to improve IVF success rates and increase understanding of embryo metabolism.

Jansen said many couples are agreeing to donate their unwanted embryos to research -- the federal government passed legislation in 2002 to allow excess IVF embryos created before April 2002 to be used in research if couples that donate the embryos give their informed consent.

"This work has cost us half a million dollars so far," Jansen said. "We will be taking out IP on it. We are happy to provide the cells to those using them for research, but if they are going to be used for commercial purposes we will exercise our rights."

Melbourne IVF was also recently granted a licence to use embryonic stem cells in research, and the National Stem Cell Centre is working with Melbourne IVF and Melbourne-based company Stem Cell Sciences to develop new human embryonic stem cell lines. Victorian premier Steve Bracks recently announced that new cell lines would be made freely available to scientists worldwide focused on medical research.

US Congress pushes for stem cell research funding

The US government would be forced to fund embryonic stem cell research, which supporters say can transform medicine, under legislation introduced in Congress.

Republican and Democratic members of the House of Representatives joined forces to introduce a bill that would require the Health and Human Services Department to press ahead with funding the research.

President George W Bush refuses to expand the use of federal funds for work on embryonic stem cells. In August 2001 he limited the use of federal monies on such research to the few batches of cells that existed at the time.

Earlier this month 58 of 100 senators signed a letter asking Bush to reverse his police.