“Man-Mice” creations show how far medical ethics has degraded.
La Jolla, CA — Scientists at the Salk Institute have created human/mouse chimeras by injecting the brains of mice with human embryonic stem cells obtained by killing live human embryos. Chimeras are mixture of human and animal species that cannot develop in nature.
Operation Rescue, one of the first groups to publicly oppose experimentation using live human embryos, expresses shock and horror at this latest revelation, showing how far ethical barriers within the medical research community have collapsed.
“Human embryonic stem cells are harvested by killing live and developing human embryos before cell differentiation has begun. This alone should present problems for ethicists,” said Operation Rescue spokesperson Cheryl Sullenger who has authored a number of published articles decrying human experimentation. “But to inject the cells from these humans beings into the brains of mice creates new ethical considerations. We have no idea of the consequences of such actions. Creating a new breed of man-mice should be shocking and unacceptable to anyone who values and respects human life. Just a decade ago, it would have been.”
“Adult stem cell treatments have shown much greater promise than the use of stem cells stripped from live human embryos. There is not one person alive today that has benefited from embryonic stem cells, but there are many who have had their lives improved with emerging adult stem cell treatments,” said Sullenger.
“Yet researchers continue to insist upon using life-destructive research, when there is more promise with research that does not take innocent life. This is an indicator that the ethics of the medical research community have eroded to the point where they apparently can no longer see why the degradation of life through these appalling experiments is wrong,” continued Sullenger.
The Salk Institute is revered the world over for the discovery of it founder, Jonas Salk, of the cure for Polio.
“It is sad to see this institution, which was once dedicated to saving lives, so callously pervert and destroy the lives of the most vulnerable among us in a depraved quest for medical advancement.
“Research derived from such human loss and degradation must not be accepted by civilized men and women. The price we will have to pay, morally and ethically, is just too high. This crosses the line of decency,” she said. “Where will it stop?”
Read “Too High a Price for Scientific Knowledge” by Cheryl Sullenger, San Diego Union-Tribune, January 27, 2000
