Baker Institute forum to examine legal battle behind stem cell research

BY FRANZ BROTZEN
Rice News staff

Scientific research using human embryonic stem cells was thrown into turmoil in August when a federal judge ruled it violated a congressional amendment. An Oct. 4 presentation at the James A. Baker III Institute for Public Policy, “The Fate of Embryonic Stem Cell Research: Examining the Legal Battle Behind the Science,” will look at the impact of the ruling on scientists and stem cell research, future legal actions and how the Obama administration and Congress can address the issues created by the court’s decision.

	Pictured above are two examples of human embryonic stem cells.

Speakers will include Robert Riddle, a patent lawyer with the law firm of Baker Botts, and Richard Behringer, professor of genetics at the University of Texas M.D. Anderson Cancer Center. Neal Lane, senior fellow in science and technology policy at the Baker Institute and Rice’s Malcolm Gillis University Professor, will deliver the opening remarks.

On Aug. 23, U.S. District Court Judge Royce Lamberth ruled in the preliminary motions of Sherley v. Sebelius that funding human embryonic stem cell (hESC) research violated the Dickey-Wicker Amendment. The amendment prohibits the creation of hESC lines from destroyed embryos. The court issued an injunction blocking all National Institutes of Health (NIH) funding for hESC research, which resulted in the NIH removing all hESC grants from review and blocking funding to newly awarded grants. Research at NIH’s Bethesda, Md., campus was halted as well.

On Sept. 8, the Department of Justice appealed; in response, a federal appeals court temporarily suspended the injunction to hear arguments from both the plaintiffs in Sherley v. Sebelius and the Department of Justice. Though hESC research is permitted — pending the appeals court ruling — Lamberth’s decision could ultimately ban funding regardless of whether the appeals court permanently stays the injunction. These tumultuous court rulings have left scientists uncertain of the future of the $140 million in grants currently funded by the NIH.

For more on the presentation, go to http://www.bakerinstitute.org/events/esc1010.

Support for the Oct. 4 program has been provided by the State of Qatar Endowment for International Stem Cell Policy.

The event begins at 4 p.m. in Baker Hall’s Kelly International Conference Center.