Hard-to-Get Stem Cells

More than one quarter of US researchers studying human embryonic stem cells say they’ve had trouble acquiring cell lines of interest.

Written byJef Akst
| 2 min read

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Human embryonic stem cellsWIKIMEDIA COMMONS, NISSIM BENVENISTY

In addition to the threat that federal funding will be banned for human embryonic stem cell (hESC) research, some scientists are struggling with the logistics of actually obtaining the cell lines, according to a survey of more than 200 US hESC researchers published in the December issue of the journal Nature Biotechnology. Specifically, nearly one quarter of respondents said they’d faced excess delays after ordering lines, and more than one quarter said they never did receive the line they were after.

“The survey results provide empirical data to support previously anecdotal concerns that delays and impediments to acquiring certain human embryonic stem cell lines may be hindering stem cell science in the United States,” Aaron Levine of the Georgia Institute of Technology said in a ...

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  • Jef (an unusual nickname for Jennifer) got her master’s degree from Indiana University in April 2009 studying the mating behavior of seahorses. After four years of diving off the Gulf Coast of Tampa and performing behavioral experiments at the Tennessee Aquarium in Chattanooga, she left research to pursue a career in science writing. As The Scientist's managing editor, Jef edited features and oversaw the production of the TS Digest and quarterly print magazine. In 2022, her feature on uterus transplantation earned first place in the trade category of the Awards for Excellence in Health Care Journalism. She is a member of the National Association of Science Writers.

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