The Oklahoma House of Representatives has voted 86-8 to protect tiny human embryos from destructive research.
House Bill 1442 would make it a misdemeanor to destroy embryos for research purposes, and prevent the buying and selling of embryos for research.
"We value life here in Oklahoma," said the bill's author, Republican Rep. George Faught.
Those who support embryonic stem-cell research claim it holds promise for curing diseases. Faught pointed out, however, that the destructive research has not produced a single treatment.
"The embryonic stem-cell fervor has blinded people to what else is available in the medical research field," he said. "The focus as well as the financial resources are being diverted from the very promising field of adult stem-cell research, which to date has yielded at least 73 cures or treatments."
In Florida, 68-year-old Max Eaton can testify to one such treatment. After suffering a heart attack 11 years ago, his heart had swollen. As part of a study at the University of Miami Medical School's Interdisciplinary Stem Cell Institute, doctors took Eaton's own stem cells and inserted them into his heart.
Across the study, the patients' swelling went down by as much as 25 percent; medication and pacemakers typically reduce the size of the heart by about 5 percent. The study appears in the March 18, 2011, issue of Circulation Research: Journal of the American Heart Association.
Source: CitizenLink
