The Stem Cell Action Coalition issued an urgent appeal to Minnesota Governor Mark Dayton to veto any legislation that contains any impediment to lawful embryonic stem cell research in the state.
Bernard Siegel, J.D., spokesperson of the Coalition and executive director of the Genetics Policy Institute, said, "Minnesota is one of the leading states in biomedical research. It would be misguided to handcuff Minnesota's world-class researchers that are using embryonic stem cells to seek potentially lifesaving cures. Without any scientific basis, Minnesota lawmakers are being stampeded into passing laws that will likely have tragic consequences for patients."
Siegel stated, "SCNT, a form of deriving embryonic stem cells, has been recognized as a potentially valuable technique for creating human cell lines that exhibit the characteristics of deadly diseases. Study of laboratory models of human disease may significantly advance our understanding of the root cause of human disease, and their use in the discovery and development of drugs that may prove invaluable. To criminalize or place unreasonable restrictions on SCNT is akin to crushing hope to those suffering from multiple sclerosis, cancer, diabetes, heart disease, spinal cord injury, stroke, blindness, AIDS, Parkinson's disease, Alzheimer's, birth defects and many more medical afflictions for which no cure is known."
The Stem Cell Action Coalition was launched in November 2010 and currently has 70 nonprofit affiliated organizations including patient groups, medical philanthropies, scientific and medical societies and public interest organizations all dedicated to advancing scientifically meritorious and ethically responsible research, such as SCNT.
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