Jennifer McCormick

1
Analysis of human embryonic stem cell research
policies
Jennifer McCormick jenmc_at_stanford.edu Postdoctoral
Research Fellow Stanford Center for Biomedical
Ethics
National Research Center for Science and
Technology for Development Beijing,
China October 19, 2006
2
Presentation Outline
Why study hESC research policy Project
descriptions - International comparison of hESC
? Current data - Survey of ESCRO
Committees - Global distribution of hESC
lines - Voices of the debate
3
Why study human embryonic stem cell research
policy?

• Technology available for 8 years
• New and promising, yet controversial
• ? President Bushs policy in place for 5 years
• ? State initiatives
• ? Global economic competitiveness

? What is the state of hESC science and the
policies governing it ?

• ? What cell lines are being used?
• ? Who is funding the research?
• ? Where is it being conducted?
• Has the Bush August 9, 2001 policy had an effect?

4
Owen-Smith and McCormick, Nature Biotech. 24 No.
4 (2006) 391
5
ESCRO Committees in the United States
- ESCRO Embryonic Stem Cell Research
Oversight - National Academies guidelines,
published April 2005
? How many ESCRO Committees have been
established? ? How institutions have formed and
developed their ESCRO committees? ? What do
they look like?

• Collect comparative information about
  institutional practices using
• a survey and semi-structured interview research
  instruments
• ? Share best practices
• ? Impact of voluntary ethical guidelines

6
Voices of the debate
Analysis of the various voices in the hES cell
research debate -Who is participating in the
public debate? -What is the message of
different groups? -How is each group conveying
their message? -Why have these groups decided to
have a voice and message?
Who Scientific community, Religious
organizations, Disease advocacy groups,
Non-academic think tanks,

• Content analysis of opinion and editorial pieces,
  congressional
• testimony, professional society position
  statements, and news articles
• - Semi-structured interviews

7
Global distribution of embryonic stem cell lines
Different sources of hESC lines may have
different patterns of distribution, providing
insight into perceived quality, price, trade
impediments, and terms of negotiation. 

• Compare distribution of University of Wisconsin
  lines
• with distribution of Harvard lines
• ?Wisconsin lines first to be derived, first with
  wide distribution
• ?Harvard lines not on animal feeder cells, no
  licensing fee

Analysis Total number of lines distributed
Total number of requests for lines Number of
lines distributed by year Numbers of requests by
year Numbers/types of lines distributed by
country Numbers/types of lines distributed by
state Numbers/types of lines distributed by
institution (non-profit, for-profit, academic)
8
The University of Michigan, Office of the Vice
President for Research