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Critics Decry Human Embryo Cloning
Monday, November 26, 2001
(8:33 AM ET)
By Jeff Donn / The Associated Press

Sen. Patrick Leahy (D-VT) (Right) and Sen. Richard Shelby (R-AL) discuss various topics including the world's first cloned human embryo and the war in Afghanistan during a taping of NBC's 'Meet the Press' November 25, 2001 at the NBC studio in Washington, DC.
Photo Credit: Reuters -- Alex Wong.

Such a technique could only yield replacement cells for women of childbearing age.

BOSTON -- AP
A research company's claim that it has cloned the first human embryo has drawn swift opposition from anti-abortion and political leaders, who see it as a step toward cloning human beings.

The researchers at Advanced Cell Technology in Worcester, Mass., say they hope to develop genetically compatible replacement cells for patients with a range of illnesses - not human clones.

The Worcester company announced its findings Sunday online in the journal e-biomed: The Journal of Regenerative Medicine. The research was also described online in Scientific American.

“This work sets the stage for human therapeutic cloning as a potentially limitless source of immune-compatible cells for tissue engineering and transplantation medicine,” said Dr. Robert P. Lanza, one of the researchers at the biotechnology company.
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2001 © The Associated Press.

Dan