France to renew stem cell regulation

France's parliament is to debate on whether current bioethics laws prohibiting
research on human embryos should be eased.

Presently, research on human embryonic stem cell (hESCs) and embryos is
banned in France. However under a 2004 amendment to the country's bioethics
law, scientists can obtain special dispensation for research aimed at
understanding or treating serious diseases.

But there is now reportedly increasing pressure on the government to create
permissive regulation. The
debate comes amid protests that Catholic Church lobbying halted plans to ease
existing restrictions on hESC research.

Researchers agree the 2004 amendments have been an improvement on the
previous outright ban, but still leave ambiguity regarding the regulatory
status of hESCs. This uncertainty could potentially be a deterrent to foreign
researchers and investment by companies, explains Dr Marc Peschanski, a
neuroscientist working for INSERM, the national biomedical research agency, and
head of the Institute for Stem Cell Therapy and Exploration of Monogenic
Diseases in Paris.

Conservative opposition to embryo research in 2004 made slow progress
for pro-hESC researchers. However, scientists report the successful oversight
of the national Biomedicine Agency, set up in 2004 to regulate human
embryology, genetics and IVF, has had a critical role in inspiring confidence and
now politicians are more comfortable with the work.

Critics of the bill believe last minute-changes by the governing conservative
UMP party would mean little alteration to the currently restrictive law. The alterations
have been described as a 'disappointment' after three years of debate by Le
Monde, a French newspaper. 'By not changing anything, the parliamentary
majority has turned the French bioethics laws into some of the most
conservative in Europe', it wrote in an editorial.