NIH Reverses Limits on Human Fetal Tissue Research

A new ruling removes the requirement that grants and proposals using the material receive approval from an ethical review board, reverting to the process in place before 2019.

Written byAmanda Heidt

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ABOVE: Human fetal tissue cells
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The National Institutes of Health announced April 16 that it is rescinding limitations on fetal tissue research put in place by former President Donald Trump.

The agency’s notice about the change states that the NIH will no longer convene the Human Fetal Tissue Research Ethics Advisory Board to review new external grants and proposals using fetal tissue, but continues to require that researchers obtain consent from donors, do not pay for such tissue, and follow any state laws governing the research, Politico reports.

Fetal tissue has become a politized topic in biomedicine because it is most often collected during elective abortions. Such tissues have been instrumental to research on everything from virology to the developing brain. Fetal cells have also been used to develop treatments and therapies for a variety of diseases, including Parkinson’s disease, Zika, HIV, and even COVID-19. The monoclonal ...

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fetal cells, fetal stem cells, policy, Biden administration, Trump administration, NIH

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Meet the Author

Amanda Heidt
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Amanda first began dabbling in scicom as a master’s student studying marine science at Moss Landing Marine Labs, where she edited the student blog and interned at a local NPR station. She enjoyed that process of demystifying science so much that after receiving her degree in 2019, she went straight into a second master’s program in science communication at the University of California, Santa Cruz. Formerly an intern at The Scientist, Amanda joined the team as a staff reporter and editor in 2021 and oversaw the publication’s internship program, assigned and edited the Foundations, Scientist to Watch, and Short Lit columns, and contributed original reporting across the publication. Amanda’s stories often focus on issues of equity and representation in academia, and she brings this same commitment to DEI to the Science Writers Association of the Rocky Mountains and to the board of the National Association of Science Writers, which she has served on since 2022. She is currently based in the outdoor playground that is Moab, Utah. Read more of her work at www.amandaheidt.com.
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