AAAS Center for Science, Technology and Congress

AAAS Policy Brief: Stem Cell Research

Issue Summary | AAAS Resources | Links

AAAS Reports and Official Statements

• Leshner-Thomson Op-Ed in The Washington Post
• Abstracts of Stem Cell Papers
• Recent Progress on Embryonic Stem Cell Research
• AAAS Statement Regarding the President's Veto of the Stem Cell Research Enhancement Act and the New Executive Order (June 20, 2007)
  
• AAAS Statement on Human Cloning (February 14, 2002)
• AAAS Statement on President Bush’s Stem Cell Policy (August 17, 2001)
• Stem Cell Research and Applications: Scientific, Ethical, and Policy Issues
  This report, issued in November 1999, followed many months of study by a highly diverse and experienced advisory group that included ethicists, theologians, and scientists.

AAAS Congressional Events, Letters and Testimony

• AAAS Asks Bush to Reconsider Veto (June 7, 2007)
• AAAS Thanks Senate for Passing the Stem Cell Research Enhancement Act (April 12, 2007)
• AAAS Urges Senate Support for Expanding Federally Funded Stem Cell Research (April 9, 2007)
• AAAS Thanks House for Passing the Stem Cell Research Enhancement Act (January 18, 2007)
• AAAS letter urges House support for expanding federally funded stem cell research. (January 8, 2007)
• AAAS letter thanking Senate supporters of stem cell research (August 1, 2006)
• AAAS letter imploring President Bush to sign H.R. 810 (July 18, 2006)
• AAAS letter urging Senators to support federal funding for hESC research (July 14, 2006)
• Testimony by CEO Alan Leshner before the Labor-HHS Subcommittee of the Senate Appropriations Committee (June 27, 2006)
• AAAS letter thanking Senator Frist for his support of stem cell research expansion (July 29, 2005)
• AAAS letter asking all Senators to expand stem cell research lines (July 18, 2005)
• AAAS letter urging defeat of an appropriations bill amendment that would punish NIH-funded scientists at institutions conducting research on stem cells derived from cloned embryos (June 16, 2005)
• AAAS letter to Representatives in support of Castle-DeGette bill (May 19, 2005)
• AAAS letter thanking Reps. Castle and DeGette for their leadership and support of stem cell research (March 16, 2005)
• AAAS letter thanking Sens. Harkin and Specter for their leadership and support of stem cell research (March 16, 2005)
• AAAS letter thanking Reps. Castle and DeGette (April 28, 2004)
• Stem Cell Research and Applications: Monitoring the Frontiers of Biomedical Research
  Dirksen Senate Office Building • April 25, 2000

AAAS News

2007:

• Embryonic Stem Cell Research Needed Despite Recent Breakthroughs, Op-Ed Says (December 4, 2007)
• AAAS Decries Latest Stem Cell Veto (June 20, 2007)
• Americans Willing to Donate Embryos for Research (June 20, 2007)
• AAAS Urges Support for Embryonic Stem Cell Bill (April 10, 2007)

2006

• Balancing Values in the Stem Cell Debate (July 18, 2006)
• AAAS Urges Comprehensive Effort on Stem Cells (July 14, 2006)
• “Full Range” of Stem Cell Research Is Needed (June 29, 2006)
• The Quest for Global Guidelines on Stem Cell Research (March 2, 2006)
• Stem Cell Experts Assess the Impact of Hwang Fraud on Research, Public Trust (February 18, 2006)

2005

• Science Editors' Statement on Korean Stem Cell Probe (December 29, 2005)
• Statement by Science Editors on Korean Stem Cell Probe (December 23, 2005)
• Science Awaiting Details On Request To Retract Stem Cell Paper (December 16, 2005)
• Reprogramming Adult Stem Cells (August 22, 2005)
• AAAS Applauds Stem Cell Speech (July 29, 2005)
• AAAS Urges Support For Embryonic Stem Cell Proposal (July 21, 2005)
• Stem Cell Measure Defeated in U.S. House (June 17, 2005)
• AAAS Urges Defeat of U.S. House Stem Cell Measure (June 16, 2005)
• AAAS Sees " Opportunity" in Stem Cell Bill (May 20, 2005)
• Science Reports New Stem Cell Breakthrough (May 19, 2005)
• Stem Cell Advocate Sees Hopeful Future (April 22, 2005)
• AAAS Welcomes Washington State Stem Cell Bill (March 28, 2005)
• 30th Annual S&T Forum to Feature Stem Cell Pioneer (March 17, 2005)
• U.N. Passes Human Cloning Resolution (March 9, 2005)
• AAAS Writes to U.N. on Human Cloning Resolution ( March 8, 2005)

2004

• AAAS Joins Call Against Therapeutic Cloning Ban (October 14, 2005)
• New Push for Stem Cell Research (June 23, 2004)
• Support for Broader Access to Stem Cell Lines (April 28, 2004)

2003

• AAAS Supports Cloning for Research Purposes (November 3, 2003)
• Impact of Cloning on Aging Research (April 22, 2003)
• Concern, Skepticism About Human Cloning Reports (January 2, 2003)

2002

• Bush Bioethics Advisor To Consider 'All Views' (April 2002)
• AAAS Statement on Human Cloning (March 2002)
• AAAS Urges Assessment of Approved Stem Cell Lines (January 2002)

2001

• AAAS Urges Immediate Public Release of Sources of Embryonic Stem Cell Lines; Calls for Assessing Adequacy of Existing Cell Lines to Advance Research (August 2001)
• AAAS urges President Bush to Fund Stem-Cell Research (March 2001)

2000

• AAAS Holds Congressional Briefing on Stem Cell Research (April 2000)

Editorials in the journal Science (freely available):

• “Stem Cells, Redux” by Donald Kennedy (March 12, 2004)
• “Stem Cells: Still Here, Still Waiting” by Donald Kennedy (May 9, 2003)
• “Harmful Moratorium on Stem Cell Research” by Janet D. Rowley, Elizabeth Blackburn, Michael S. Gazzaniga, and Daniel W. Foster ( September 20, 2002)
• Progress with Stem Cells: Stuck or Unstuck? by Paul Berg (9/14/01)
• Human Embryo Research: Lessons from History, by LeRoy Walters (8/24/01)
• Disappearing Stem Cells, Disappearing Science, by Irving L. Weissman and David Baltimore (4/27/01)
• Two Cheers for New Stem Cell Rules, by Donald Kennedy (9/1/00)

Subscribers may access Science news articles via www.sciencemag.org.

Updated May 31, 2007