The National Institutes of Health (NIH) has established a much-awaited panel charged with deciding whether human embryonic stem cell (hESC) lines derived in the past eight years should be approved for use in NIH-funded research.

Human embryonic stem cells Image: Wikimedia commons, Nissim Benvenisty

In March of this year, US President Barack Obama issued an executive order to overturn the embryonic stem cell policy implemented by former President George W. Bush, which outlawed federal funding for hESC lines derived after August 9, 2001. The new order allows for federal support of additional cell lines, provided they meet strict regulations regarding the embryo procurement process.

Researchers have estimated that more than 600 hESC lines were developed under the Bush law, but because they could not be used in federally funded work, they have made limited contributions to the literature. The new nine-member working group, led by bioethicist Jeffrey Botkin at the University of Utah School of Medicine, will advise the NIH with regards to whether those lines were derived with the proper informed consent from the embryo donor and other ethical principles were met.

"It's an honor to be asked [and] an exciting opportunity to be involved in this new development with embryonic stem cells," said Botkin, who has focused on research ethics and bioethics more broadly in the past.

Researchers working on such lines must apply to the panel in order to get the lines approved for federal funding. (hESC lines previously approved under the Bush administration will undergo reassessment by the panel, but those lines derived in a "responsible manner" will be eligible for use in NIH-funded research, according to the guidelines.)

After the working group gives its analyses to the Advisory Committee to the Director (ACD), the ACD will make a recommendation to the NIH director, who will have the final say on which hESC lines are eligible for federal funding. Approved lines will then be listed in the NIH Human Embryonic Stem Cell Registry, to be created by the NIH under the new guidelines.

Botkin said the group plans to meet face-to-face for the first time next month, but how many applications they will face and how they will tackle the work isn't yet clear. "I'll know a whole lot more in a month or so about how all of this is going to come together," Botkin said.

Requests for new hESCs (derived on or after July 7, 2009) to be approved for use in NIH-funded research can also be submitted through the NIH website.


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