British team grows human heart valve from stem cells

[Bluebear]

A British research team led by the world's leading heart surgeon has grown part of a human heart from stem cells for the first time. If animal trials scheduled for later this year prove successful, replacement tissue could be used in transplants for the hundreds of thousands of people suffering from heart disease within three years.

Sir Magdi Yacoub, a professor of cardiac surgery at Imperial College London, has worked on ways to tackle the shortage of donated hearts for transplant for more than a decade. His team at the heart science centre at Harefield hospital have grown tissue that works in the same way as the valves in human hearts, a significant step towards the goal of growing whole replacement hearts from stem cells.

http://www.guardian.co.uk/medicine/story/0,,2048062,00.html

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WASHINGTON (Reuters) - Stem cells will be at the top of the agenda for the U.S. Senate when it returns on Tuesday with supporters of the research hoping they can change the president's mind on the issue and opponents hoping to have a say about their stand.

The Senate will consider two bills, one virtually identical to a bill vetoed by President George W. Bush last year that would have expanded and encouraged federal funding of human embryonic stem cell research.

The other is a compromise measure worked out by Republicans Sen. Johnny Isakson (news, bio, voting record) of Georgia and Norm Coleman (news, bio, voting record) of Minnesota. It would encourage stem cell research on embryos that have naturally lost the ability to develop into fetuses, such as those that have died "naturally" during fertility treatments.

http://news.yahoo.com/s/nm/20070408/pl_nm/congress_stemcells_dc_1

[aquart]

1. We could have been there already if it weren't for George.

So how many Americans did he kill that way?

[seriousstan]

5. stem cells extracted from bone marrow have always been funded.

This was never under a ban of any sort.

[annabanana]

2. Wow! That will help so many people.

It is truly astounding what the human mind can achieve, given time and resources.

[DRoseDARs]

3. Odd, the world doesn't seem to have ended...

I'm only half kidding. ;) The stem cells they used were from bone marrow, not embryos.

[Sadie4629]

4. I just read the whole article

"By using chemical and physical nudges, the scientists first coaxed stem cells extracted from bone marrow to grow into heart valve cells."

AFAIK, funding for adult stem cell research isn't prohibited here.

Just sayin'.

[Bluebear]

6. It's the UK, they are not subject to our Holy Laws anyhow. nt

[Sadie4629]

7. Yes, and--

--in your OP you brought up two new bills regarding funding of EMBRYONIC stem cell research--in this country. What's your point?

[Bluebear]

8. Stem cell research can save lives. What's the problem here?

[Sadie4629]

9. Agenda?

I don't have an agenda.

Stem cell research may very well be the equivalent of the discovery of antibiotics. But funding of ADULT stem cell research is not, and has never been prohibited. To lump it in with an article about funding of EMBRYONIC stem cell research seems to be a little misleading.

[Bluebear]

10. OK sorry for 'misleading' everybody here!

:crazy: