'The same Government that is prepared to invest millions in biotechnological research, destroying human embryos in the blind pursuit of a cure, is telling us that they haven't got the money to pay for tube feeding for the vulnerable.'

The scientists announced their important advance as South Korean researchers revealed in London that they had created the first customised embryonic stem-cells, genetically tailored to match a group of patients.

The Korean research means similar cells could be used to treat diseases and rebuild failing organs in patients without having to overcome the problem of immune system rejection.

Today, the Britons welcomed the Korean achievement, as they announced their own breakthrough. They had successfully produced a blastocyst -- a tiny, early stage embryo consisting of a hollow ball of cells -- cloned from a human cell using nuclear transfer.

Although a long way behind the Korean research, it was the first time a human-cloned embryo had been created in Britain. The Newcastle scientists were the first in Britain to obtain a license to carry out therapeutic cloning for stem-cell research.

Two of the team, Professor Alison Murdoch, who chairs the British Fertility Society, and Dr. Miodrag Stojkovic said in a joint statement: "We are delighted to hear of the great progress that is being made by Professor Hwang and his colleagues.

"They have shown conclusively that these techniques can be successful in humans. The promise of new treatments based on stem-cell technology is moving nearer to becoming a realistic possibility.

"We welcome their decision to publish the details of this breakthrough so thoroughly that other scientists will now be able to repeat and develop their work.

"During the past nine months in Newcastle, our research in nuclear transfer has progressed well. Our preliminary data will be published soon.

"We have successfully derived a blastocyst following nuclear transfer, but come to the same conclusions as Professor Hwang about the vital importance of the quality of the donated egg."

But such research is controversial, with every step forward by scientists engaged in therapeutic cloning said by some to assist mavericks working towards the creation of cloned babies.

In the UK, reproductive cloning is banned by law, and a breach can result in a ten-year prison sentence.

Julia Millington, of the ProLife Alliance, linked the Newcastle research with the Department of Health highlighting the cost implications of granting a patient's advance request for life-sustaining care and the current legal challenge in Leslie Burke's rights-to-treatment case.

She said: "The same Government that is prepared to invest millions in biotechnological research, destroying human embryos in the blind pursuit of a cure, is telling us that they haven't got the money to pay for tube feeding for the vulnerable.

"The same country that is doing everything possible to utilize early human life to seek to cure disease begrudges incapacitated patients the provision of nutrition and hydration."

She added: "Cloning for research purposes, which involves the manufacture of human embryos destined for experimentation and subsequent destruction, is profoundly unethical. So too, is the killing of terminally ill patients by starvation and dehydration."

(c) 2005 Birmingham Post; Birmingham (UK). All rights reserved.
(c) 2005 Daily News Central. All rights reserved.