The extraordinary saga of Terri Schiavo continues
The plight of brain-damaged Florida Terri Schiavo continues to shake America. In an extraordinary move, the US Congress was recalled from its Easter recess to...
Nose stem cells could be breakthrough
An Australian team on a shoestring budget claims that adult stem cells harvested from the nose can morph into every kind of cell in the...
Govt moves to stop stem cell free-for-all in India
Two government departments in India have agreed to draft common guidelines to monitor and control the mushrooming fields of stem cell medicine and research. A...
500 embryos disappear from Croatian clinic
Supporters of more liberal assisted reproduction legislation in Croatia are using the disappearance of 500 frozen embryos to press for reform. The embryos, which belonged...
Obesity could rescue American social security
The good news is that legions of fat Americans are going to rescue their crumbling social security system from collapse by dying as much as...
Beware of foreign organ donors, says Australian study
Patients who seek kidneys overseas face a much higher risk of death and failed grafts, an Australian study claims. Paying organ donors is illegal in...
… and of foreign cosmetic surgeons
Many Florida women who seek bargain-priced cosmetic surgery in Latin America are returning with scarred bodies and infected wounds, according to the Miami Herald. Shonky...
Research ethics in developing countries needs sound framework
Although medical research in developing countries is essential, it needs to be accompanied by a sound ethical framework, says a report from the UK's Nuffield...
Stem cell initiatives advance in US state legislatures
A number of American states are playing catch-up now that California stem-cell scientists have a US$300 million-a-year kitty for their research. In Washington state, the...
New Zealand approves genetic testing of human embryos
The New Zealand government will allow fertility clinics to perform pre-implantation genetic diagnosis for serious inherited disorders. The National Ethics Committee on Assisted Human Reproduction...
BRIEFS: Alzheimer’s; awards; sex selection; IVF
Alzheimer's: Although most scientists believe that stem cell transplants are highly unlikely to treat Alzheimer's disease successfully, the body's own stem cells might be harnessed...