Skip to main content

Thank you for visiting nature.com. You are using a browser version with limited support for CSS. To obtain the best experience, we recommend you use a more up to date browser (or turn off compatibility mode in Internet Explorer). In the meantime, to ensure continued support, we are displaying the site without styles and JavaScript.

  • Correspondence
  • Published:

Somatic cell nuclear transfer—how science outpaces the law

Nature Biotechnology volume 21, pages 969–970 (2003)Cite this article

To the editor:

Louis Guenin's Commentary from the May issue (Nat. Biotechnol. 21, 482–483) refers to 'the maze of enactments' of relevance to embryo research that have recently been passed by legislators. Because the benefits to society of embryo and stem cell research must be weighed against complex and shifting moral concerns, it is clear that laws often lag behind scientific advancement. We contend that this lag is leading to inflexible and illogical statutory responses that restrict embryonic stem (ES) cell research. This is likely to have an unnecessarily negative impact on biomedical research, stifle public discourse and undermine the legitimacy of law.

This is a preview of subscription content, access via your institution

Access options

Buy this article

  • Purchase on Springer Link
  • Instant access to full article PDF
Buy now

Prices may be subject to local taxes which are calculated during checkout

References

  1. Simerly, C. et al. Science 300, 297 (2003). [AU: correct only one page for this and refs. 8, 9?]

    Article  Google Scholar 

  2. Hübner, K. et al. Science 300, 1251–1256 (2003).

    Article  Google Scholar 

  3. Pattison, S. Influencing Traits Before Birth (Ashgate, London, 2002).

    Google Scholar 

  4. Canada Parliament. An Act respecting assisted human reproduction [Bill C-13]. 2nd Session, 37th Parliament, 2002.

  5. Annas, G.J. New Engl. J. Med. 346, 1599–1602 (2002).

    Article  Google Scholar 

  6. Daar, A.S. & Sheremeta, L. Health Law Review 11, 5–13 (2002).

    PubMed  Google Scholar 

  7. Vogel G. Science 300, 225–227 (2003).

    Article  CAS  Google Scholar 

  8. Schatten, G., Prather, R. & Wilmut, I. Science 299, 344 (2003).

    Article  CAS  Google Scholar 

  9. Check, E. Nature 415, 722 (2002).

    PubMed  Google Scholar 

  10. UK House of Commons Standing Committee on Health. Assisted Human Reproduction: Building Families (UK Government, London, December 2001).

  11. Lin, H. et al. Stem Cells 21, 152–161 (2003).

    Article  Google Scholar 

  12. Chambers, I. et al. Cell 113, 643–655 (2003).

    Article  CAS  Google Scholar 

Download references

Acknowledgements

T.C.'s and L.S.'s research is supported by Genome Prairie and the Stem Cell Network. A.S.D.'s grant support, provided by the Program in Applied Ethics and Biotechnology, is supported by Genome Canada, the Ontario Research and Development Challenge Fund, GlaxoSmithKline, Merck & Co., Sun Life Financial, the University of Toronto, the Hospital for Sick Children, Sunnybrook and Women's College Health Science Centre, the University Health Network, the Mount Sinai Hospital Research Institute and the McLaughlin Centre for Molecular Medicine.

Author information

Authors and Affiliations

  1. Health Law Institute, 4th Floor Law Centre, University of Alberta, Edmonton, T6G 2H5, Alberta, Canada

    Timothy Caulfield & Lorraine Sheremeta

  2. Joint Centre for Bioethics, University of Toronto, 88 College Street, Toronto, M5G 1L4, Ontario, Canada

    Abdallah S Daar

Authors
  1. Timothy Caulfield
    View author publications

    You can also search for this author in PubMed Google Scholar

  2. Lorraine Sheremeta
    View author publications

    You can also search for this author in PubMed Google Scholar

  3. Abdallah S Daar
    View author publications

    You can also search for this author in PubMed Google Scholar

Rights and permissions

Reprints and permissions

About this article

Cite this article

Caulfield, T., Sheremeta, L. & Daar, A. Somatic cell nuclear transfer—how science outpaces the law. Nat Biotechnol 21, 969–970 (2003). https://doi.org/10.1038/nbt0903-969b

Download citation

  • Issue Date:

  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1038/nbt0903-969b

Search

Advanced search

Quick links

Nature Briefing

Sign up for the Nature Briefing newsletter — what matters in science, free to your inbox daily.

Get the most important science stories of the day, free in your inbox. Sign up for Nature Briefing