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Use of stem cells for treatment began in the late 1950s, with congressional involvement in embryonic research policy starting as early as 1974. The first major amendment related to the use of federal funds for research involving embryonic cells occurred in 1996. From this point onward, this timeline provides policy landmarks affecting the course of stem cell research in the US.
1996
The Dickey-Wicker Amendment
Congress bans federal funding for research on embryos through the Dickey-Wicker Amendment, named after Reps. Jay Dickey (R-AR) and Roger Wicker (R-MS). The amendment prohibits the use of federal funds for the creation of a human embryo or embryos for research purposes, or research in which a human embryo or embryos are destroyed, discarded or knowingly subjected to risk of injury or death greater than that allowed for research on fetuses in utero.
2000
August 25: NIH guidelines for research using human pluripotent stem cells go into effect
The National Institutes of Health, interpreting the Dickey-Wicker Amendment, releases guidelines for research on embryonic stem cells. The guidelines stipulate that human embryonic stem cells must be derived with private funds from frozen embryos from fertility clinics; that they must have been created for fertility treatment purposes; that they be in excess of the donor’s clinical need; and that they be obtained with consent of the donor.
2001
June 7: President Bush prohibits federal funding of most human embryonic stem cell research
President George W. Bush prohibits the federal funding of any research using stem cell lines derived after August 9, 2001, but his policy does not affect research in the private sector or research conducted with state funding. The president claims that more than 60 stem cell lines are available for funding.
2005
June: Congress passes the Stem Cell Research Enhancement Act (H.R. 810):
H.R. 810, which would have expanded federal funding for stem cell research to include stem cells derived from embryos created for, but subsequently not used in, the in-vitro fertilization process, passes both the House and the Senate in the 109th Congress, attracting bipartisan support. However, the bill is quickly vetoed by President Bush. The House votes 235-193 in favor of the bill, but the two-thirds majority needed to override the veto is not reached.
2007
July: Congress passes the Stem Cell Research Enhancement Act (S. 5)
In the 110th Congress, the Senate passes their version of The Stem Cell Research Enhancement Act (S. 5) with strong bipartisan support, 63-34. The House also passes the Senate’s version of the bill 247-176. Again, the bill is vetoed by President Bush, and again Congress cannot override the veto.
2009
March 9: President Obama reverses 2001 executive order
President Barack Obama issues an executive order, titled “Removing Barriers to Responsible Scientific Research Involving Human Stem Cells.”
July 7: Sherley v. Sebelius, the most noteworthy court case regarding the government’s funding of embryonic stem cell research, is filed
A group of plaintiffs led by adult stem cell scientists James Sherley, MD, PhD, and Theresa Deisher, PhD, file a lawsuit against the NIH and the Department of Health and Human Services, arguing that federal funding of embryonic stem cell research is in violation of the Dickey-Wicker amendment.
2011
June 24: DeGette introduces H.R. 2376, the Stem Cell Research Advancement Act of 2011
Rep. Diana DeGette (D-CO) introduces H.R. 2376, a bill which calls for the Secretary of the Department of Health and Human Services to conduct and support research that utilizes human stem cells, including embryonic stem cells. Embryonic stem cells must come from embryos stored at in-vitro fertilization clinics; created for the purpose of reproductive treatment; in excess of clinical need; and would otherwise be discarded. The donor must also have written informed consent on file and not be reimbursed for the donation. The bill has 28 cosponsors in the House of Representatives, and there is no Senate equivalent. It is referred to the House Subcommittee on Health, where it currently sits.
July 27: U.S. District Court for the District of Columbia rules in favor of embryonic stem cell research in Sherley v. Sebelius:
“Therefore this Court, following the [U.S. Court of Appeals for the D.C. Circuit] reasoning and conclusions, must find that defendants reasonably interpreted the Dickey-Wicker Amendment to permit funding for human embryonic stem cell research because such research is not ‘research in which a human embryo or embryos are destroyed’ …The NIH reasonably concluded, as expressed in the notice of proposed rulemaking, that the fundamental policy question of whether to provide federal funds for embryonic stem cell research wasn’t a question for it to decide. That policy question is not answered by any congressional law, and it has fallen on three presidential administrations to provide an answer. For all three such administrations, Democratic and Republican, the answer has been to permit federal funding. They have differed only as to the path forward.” — Royce C. Lamberth, Chief Judge.
2012
August 24: U.S. Court of Appeals for the D.C. Circuit hears arguments about human embryonic stem cell research funding
In a decision favorable to proponents of embryonic stem cell research, the U.S. Court of Appeals for the D.C. Circuit upholds a lower court ruling that dismissed a lawsuit challenging the Obama administration’s expansion of federal funding for stem cell research.
2013
January 7: Supreme Court declines to hear Sherley v. Sebelius
The Supreme Court announed that it would not hear Sherley v. Sebelius, thereby upholding the previous ruling of the D.C. circuit court’s ruling. “This is a major victory for scientifically and ethically responsible innovative research,” Bernard Siegel, spokesperson for the Stem Cell Action Coalition and executive director of the Genetics Policy Institute, said in a statement. May 15: Scientists Generate Human Nuclear-Transfer Embryonic Stem Cells Researchers at the Oregon Health and Science University successfully reprogrammed human skin cells into embryonic stem cells, using a cloning technique called “somatic cell nuclear transfer” (SCNT). By removing the DNA from an egg cell and replacing it with genetic material from an somatic cell, scientists were able to create an unspecialized cell, which they could program into becoming multiple different cell types, including the contracting cardiomyocytes that make up our heart muscle. Because these new nuclear transfer-embryonic stem cells (NT-ESCs) are created from an adult cell and do not require the addition of select genes for differentiation, they differ from existing methods of stem cell derivation, including in vitro fertilization and induced pluripotent stem cell creation.
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