All 3 stem cell bills pass Senate

Just a few minutes ago, the last (H.B. 810)--and most controversial--of the three stem cells debated in the Senate passed 63 to 37. According to the summary shown on the C-SPAN2 screen, this bill "broadens spending for embryonic stem cell research". Actually, what it does is remove the limitations now in force; no additional money is allocated in the bill. Since the House had already passed this bill (14 months ago), the bill now goes to President Bush. If he vetoes it, as he has declared, the 63 votes would not be enough to override the veto; 67 votes are needed.

The other two bills relating to stem cell research (no fetal farming and investigate alternative ways of making embryonic stem cell lines), as expected, passed-- unanimously. These will now go to the House, where they are also expected to easily pass. President Bush will likely sign these two bills.

One question arose in my mind as I was watching the voting: if so many spoke in favor of retaining the limits on federal spending for embryonic stem cell research why did so few (zero) vote against the bill that directs NIH to investigate alternative ways of creating embryonic stem cell lines? Wouldn't this money also be "taken away" from adult stem cell research"?

Anyway, the drama is over in the Senate. Let's see what President Bush does.

Marie Godfrey, PhD

ALL the bills

Just in case you think the list of active bills (in the previous blog entry) covers everything, here is the full list of bills relating to stem cells and cloning introduced into the House (ih) or Senate (is) and the actions taken since then. Each abbreviation, eg (ih), is defined after each title. The ones marked with * are on the current active legislation list.

H.Con.Res. 166 (ih) Expressing the sense of the Congress that the Federal Government should not infringe on State or private programs that fund embryonic stem cell research. [Introduced in House]

H.R. 162 (ih) To authorize the use of Federal funds for research on human embryonic stem cells irrespective of the date on which such stem cells were derived, and for other purposes. [Introduced in House]

H.R. 222 (ih) To prohibit the expenditure of Federal funds to conduct or support research on the cloning of humans, and to express the sense of the Congress that other countries should establish substantially equivalent restrictions. [Introduced in House]

H.R. 596 (ih) To amend the Public Health Service Act to establish a National Cord Blood Stem Cell Bank Network to prepare, store, and distribute human umbilical cord blood stem cells for the treatment of patients and to support peer-reviewed research using such cells. [Introduced in House]

H.R. 810 (eh) To amend the Public Health Service Act to provide for human embryonic stem cell research. [Engrossed in House]

H.R. 810 (ih) To amend the Public Health Service Act to provide for human embryonic stem cell research. [Introduced in House]

H.R. 810 (pcs) To amend the Public Health Service Act to provide for human embryonic stem cell research. [Placed on Calendar Senate]

Stem cell bills to be debated in Senate July 17

Here are the summaries of the bills being considered:

S.3504

Title: A bill to amend the Public Health Service Act to prohibit the solicitation or acceptance of tissue from fetuses gestated for research purposes, and for other purposes.
Sponsor: Sen Santorum, Rick [PA] (introduced 6/13/2006) Cosponsors (2)
Related Bills: H.R.5719
Latest Major Action: 6/13/2006 Referred to Senate committee. Status: Read twice and referred to the Committee on Health, Education, Labor, and Pensions.

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SUMMARY AS OF:
6/13/2006--Introduced.
Fetus Farming Prohibition Act of 2006 - Amends the Public Health Service Act to prohibit any person or entity involved in interstate commerce from: (1) soliciting or knowingly acquiring, receiving, or accepting a donation of human fetal tissue knowing that a human pregnancy was deliberately initiated to provide such tissue; or (2) knowingly acquiring, receiving, or accepting tissue or cells obtained from a human embryo or fetus that was gestated in the uterus of a nonhuman animal. Imposes fines and/or imprisonment for violations of this Act.

S.2754

Title: A bill to derive human pluripotent stem cell lines using techniques that do not knowingly harm embryos.
Sponsor: Sen Santorum, Rick [PA] (introduced 5/5/2006) Cosponsors (4)
Related Bills: H.R.5526
Latest Major Action: 6/27/2006 Senate committee/subcommittee actions. Status: Committee on Appropriations Subcommittee on Labor, Health and Human Services, Education, and Related Agencies. Hearings held.

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SUMMARY AS OF:
5/5/2006--Introduced.

Alternative Pluripotent Stem Cell Therapies Enhancement Act - Amends the Public Health Service Act to require the Secretary of Health and Human Services to develop techniques for the isolation, derivation, production, or testing of stem cells that are capable of producing all or almost all of the cell types of the developing body and may result in improved understanding of treatments for diseases and other adverse health conditions, but are not derived from a human embryo.

Requires the Secretary to: (1) provide guidance concerning the next steps required for additional research; (2) prioritize research with the greatest potential for near-term clinical benefit; and (3) take into account techniques outlined by the President's Council on Bioethics and any other appropriate techniques and research.

H.R.810

Title: To amend the Public Health Service Act to provide for human embryonic stem cell research.
Sponsor: Rep Castle, Michael N. [DE] (introduced 2/15/2005) Cosponsors (200)
Related Bills: S.471
Latest Major Action: 6/6/2005 Read the second time. Placed on Senate Legislative Calendar under General Orders. Calendar No. 119.

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SUMMARY AS OF:
5/24/2005--Passed House, without amendment. (There is 1 other summary)

(This measure has not been amended since it was introduced. The summary has been expanded because action occurred on the measure.)

Stem Cell Research Enhancement Act of 2005 - Amends the Public Health Service Act to require the Secretary of Health and Human Services to conduct and support research that utilizes human embryonic stem cells, regardless of the date on which the stem cells were derived from a human embryo, provided such embryos: (1) have been donated from in vitro fertilization clinics; (2) were created for the purposes of fertility treatment; (3) were in excess of the needs of the individuals seeking such treatment and would never be implanted in a woman and would otherwise be discarded (as determined in consultation with the individuals seeking fertility treatment); and (4) were donated by such individuals with written informed consent and without any financial or other inducements.

Requires the Secretary to: (1) issue final guidelines to carry out this Act within 60 days; and (2) submit annual reports on activities and research conducted under this Act.

H.R.810
Title: To amend the Public Health Service Act to provide for human embryonic stem cell research.
Sponsor: Rep Castle, Michael N. [DE] (introduced 2/15/2005) Cosponsors (200)
Related Bills: S.471
Latest Major Action: 6/6/2005 Read the second time. Placed on Senate Legislative Calendar under General Orders. Calendar No. 119.

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SUMMARY AS OF:
2/15/2005--Introduced. (There is 1 other summary)

Stem Cell Research Enhancement Act of 2005 - Amends the Public Health Service Act to require the Secretary of Health and Human Services to conduct and support research that utilizes human embryonic stem cells, regardless of the date on which the stem cells were derived from a human embryo. Limits such research to stem cells that meet the following ethical requirements: (1) the stem cells were derived from human embryos donated from in vitro fertilization clinics for the purpose of fertility treatment and were in excess of the needs of the individuals seeking such treatment; (2) the embryos would never be implanted in a woman and would otherwise be discarded; and (3) such individuals donate the embryos with written informed consent and receive no financial or other inducements.

You can check out additional details by going to www.senate.gov and making your selection of the bills on the righthand side of the screen (schedule for Monday, July 17).

Marie Godfrey, PhD

Was stem cell action in Senate strictly political?

I watched many hours of the stem cell debates in the Senate Monday and Tuesday, taking a break mainly when the Senate went to lunch on Tuesday.

Actually, one had to watch only once in a while, because much of the information presented was repeated over and over. I believe the whole discussion was strictly a political move on the part of both Democrats and Republicans. Democrats and Republicans alike pushed to have the measure discussed so that the public could see them on stage making their pitch. All are eager to look good to their constituents and others and most really believe what they were saying.

The "deal" to put 3 bills together and to vote on the newer ones before the older H.B. 810 gave everyone an opportunity to speak on behalf of two bills considered not controversial. Then, each could give their spin to the controversial bill. Meanwhile, though, everyone "knows" that President Bush will rescue the millions or billions that might be spent on stem cell lines created after August, 2001 by vetoing the bill.

The following statements have been around for a long time (certainly since 2001):

• Treatment with adult stem cells (and cord blood stem cells) has shown positive results for 65 (68, 70, 72?) diseases [the number varies, but no one ever mentions that almost all represent infusions of blood-forming cells in patients treated for cancer]
• Embryonic stem cell research has not "cured" a single disease [note the difference between "positive results"--the new mantra--and "cure". This statement is true; however, clinical studies of embryonic stem cells are just beginning, and those funded by the federal government can only be done with 6 (4?) "healthy" but mouse-contaminated cell lines. Studies with adult stem cells (eg, bone marrow) have been going on for decades.]
• Creation of embryonic stem cells requires the killing of embryos. [Yes, removal of the inner cell mass from a very early embryo does mean that the embryo will never develop into a human being. If you agree that this is killing an embryo, the rest of the text here doesn't apply. However, no blastocyst is guaranteed life: many embryos do not succeed in implanting when they are put into a woman's uterus; some embryos are "killed" when too many embryos implant and develop, and a multiple-birth is risky; many embryos are allowed to die (from storage beyond a couple of years); many embryos are discarded because they are not needed by the people who supplied the egg and sperm.]
• Some people have adopted embryos (having one or more introduced into a woman's uterus and allowed to develop). These are the Snowflake children. [The numbers naturally have increased since 2001.]
• Stem cells from a source other than the person receiving them can cause immune reactions in the recipient. [Speakers generally accused the non-favored type of stem cells of causing this problem. Yes, there is always a chance of rejection, graft-vs-host reaction, and other immune problems when foreign cells are introduced. However, The stem cells taken from a person and injected back into that person have the same genetic components; if the person developed a genetically-influenced condition, giving back the same genes cannot help forever. Cord blood cells are not the answer: Most adults didn't save their umbilical cord cells, and if they did, the cells wouldn't be healthy in storage over more than 5 years or so. There are very few stem cells in the umbilical cord, so even an infant or child who was originally attached to the cord cannot get more than one stem cell treatment without growing the cells in test tubes.]
  

Here are some of the newer arguments for and against embryonic stem cell research:

• Stem cell lines have been created by "alternative" means--one of the three bills requires Congress to spend money to further research these methods. [Did you know that one method creates a defective embryo and then uses it as a source for stem cells and that another method removes one cell from an 8-cell embryo and uses this to develop a stem cell line? Both techniques are new, not fully tested, and other possibilities certainly exist.]
• Embryonic stem cells injected into mice create teratomas (cancers). [One speaker said, "that's how scientists tell the cells are stem cells, because they are capable of growing in the new location"; another said "we can never control these teratomas, which will kill the recipient"--these are not direct quotes.]
• Adult stem cells have been used to create new heart tissue and repair damaged spinal cords. [This work is still early, only on individual patients generally outside the U.S. and not in controlled clinical studies, and neither is a "new" use of stem cells. The stem cells used--either hematopoietic (blood-forming) or connective tissue (also generally from bone marrow)--could be expected to develop into the resulting tissues.]
  
• Stem cell lines have been created from eggs and sperm (germ cells). [I need to research this one further; since eggs and sperm have only 1/2 the chromosomes of other cells, this statement cannot be totally true. The research must refer to cells in the body that can develop into eggs and sperm. Also, in women, all egg cells have already been formed at birth so it is hard to tell what cells are being described.]

I think that list gives you enough-perhaps more than you wanted to know--about some of the arguments presented during Senate presentations. You can read everything, including all information a Senator asked to have "put into record" by going to www.senate.gov and accessing the Daily Digest--and then the detailed text--for each day.

Marie Godfrey, PhD