VICTORIA has become the first Australian state to propose legislation approving the use of somatic cell nuclear transfer, or therapeutic cloning.While this is no surprise given the state's support of the Lockhart review, whose recommendations led to last year's conscience vote in Federal Parliament, it is a significant step that signals Victoria as a world player in stem cell research.
It is also the final step in what has been a somewhat lonely campaign by Premier Steve Bracks and Innovation Minister John Brumby to ensure state and federal legislation supports rather than hampers the world-class research by our stem cell scientists.
Last year, Justice Lockhart and his committee recommended that federal legislation covering stem cell research be extended to include somatic cell nuclear transfer.
Although the recommendation — given the review was set up by Federal Parliament, and had support from most of the states and the Council of Australian Governments — should have been passed by Parliament, it was further politicised with a conscience vote.
But the recommendation did pass and our scientists join those in Sweden, Korea, Israel and Britain in being able to develop disease models and identify treatments for diseases such as motor neurone disease, Parkinson's disease and diabetes.
Mr Bracks and Queensland Premier Peter Beattie are prepared to resist Catholic opposition in and outside their party and the union movement to push for state legislation that will allow therapeutic cloning.
It is a clear and not unexpected move.
The Bracks Government has long been a proponent of stem cell research, including therapeutic cloning. It is a strong supporter of a plan to establish a national stem cell bank at the Australian Stem Cell Centre at Monash University, a centre that remains — as Mr Bracks and Mr Brumby often proclaim — one of the world's leading centres in stem cell research.
It is clear Mr Bracks and Mr Brumby believe that maintaining this pole position in the international stem cell field can only be maintained by state legislation that allows our scientists to conduct therapeutic cloning or SCNT.
SCNT involves taking the nucleus of a cell from a patient, transferring it into an egg from which the nucleus has been removed, growing the resultant embryo in the laboratory for about five days and then extracting the embryonic stem cells, which are exact copies of the patient's DNA.
It is important to note that the process does not involve the use of sperm, so the embryos are not fertilised, unlike excess IVF embryos that are now used to derive embryonic stem cell lines.
The egg in this sense is used purely as an incubator for copying the patient's cells.
The other important difference between SCNT and IVF embryos is that there is no intention with SCNT embryos to implant them or allow them to develop into a person.
Under the proposed Victorian legislation, such embryos would not be allowed to develop past 14 days, and should never be implanted into a woman.
As an industry association that represents individuals and companies across the full spectrum of biotechnology research and commercialisation, we applaud the Bracks Government push to allow SCNT.
As with the recommendations of the Lockhart review, the proposed legislation is tight enough to tackle the rigorous ethical standards expected by the Australian community, and is also flexible enough to respond to a rapidly changing research area.
Dr Anna Lavelle is chief executive of AusBiotech, Australia's biotechnology industry organisation, which represents 2500 members.
It is important to note that the process does not involve the use of sperm, so the embryos are not fertilised, unlike excess IVF embryos that are now used to derive embryonic stem cell lines.
The egg in this sense is used purely as an incubator for copying the patient's cells. The other important difference between SCNT and IVF embryos is that there is no intention with SCNT embryos to implant them or allow them to develop into a person.
Under the proposed Victorian legislation, such embryos would not be allowed to develop past 14 days, and should never be implanted into a woman.
As an industry association that represents individuals and companies across the full spectrum of biotechnology research and commercialisation, we applaud the Bracks Government push to allow SCNT.
As with the recommendations of the Lockhart review, the proposed legislation is tight enough to tackle the rigorous ethical standards expected by the Australian community, and is also flexible enough to respond to a rapidly changing research area.
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