Harvard scientists offer 17 stem cell lines for free
Exasperated with US restrictions on embryonic stem cell research, one of the leading experts in the field, Douglas Melton, of Harvard University, and his colleagues...
Harvard to sidestep Bush’s restrictions on stem cell research
Throwing its enormous financial clout and prestige behind embryonic stem cell research, Harvard University, one of the top US centres for biomedical research, has put...
Bitter bioethicists link hands with angry scientists
US celebrity bioethicist Arthur Caplan has orchestrated a biting open letter to President George Bush after he sacked two supporters of therapeutic cloning from his...
Ignore wishes of relatives of organ donors, says Abbott
Australian Health Minister Tony Abbott says that relatives should not be able to override a person's wish to donate organs. "So many potential organ donors...
More AIDS victims get transplants in US
American surgeons are becoming more willing to perform transplant operations for AIDS patients. The improving health and greater life expectancy of AIDS patients have meant...
Green light for human tests with pesticides in US
A US federal government panel says that companies and government agencies can test the toxicity of pesticides or other substances on human, and potentially even...
California court forces religious charity to offer contraceptives
In a test case watched closely by women's groups across the US, the California Supreme Court has ordered a Catholic employer to include contraceptives, including...
Cancer patients should die at home, says charity
A UK charity, Marie Curie Cancer Care, is lobbying the government to fund home care so that patients can die at home with their families....
Regulating suicide tourism in Switzerland
Frustrated by the Swiss central government's lethargy, Zurich's public prosecutor is drafting legislation to clamp down on "suicide tourism" and to burden assisted suicide groups...
Scientists can be rascals, say journal editors
Some researchers are up to no good, according to the annual report of the Committee on Publishing Ethics. Although the number of misdemeanours -- 29...
IN BRIEF: Canadian Caesars; female genital mutilation; free IVF in UK; quitting IVF
Canadian obstetricians will soon be free to deliver babies by caesarean section without a medical reason. In the past the operation was reserved for high-risk...