Stem cell ruling could cost UB millions
By TRACEY DRURY tdrury@bizjournals.com | 716-541-1609

Researchers say stem cells such as these may hold the answer to a multitude of diseases including Parkinson's.

Though the order won't yet put a halt to research under way in the Buffalo area, local researchers and policymakers at the local and state levels say the ruling could ultimately have a chilling effect on all research that involves stem cells - with an impact on promising work in the fields of Parkinson's disease, heart disease and even cancer.

The ruling by U.S. District Judge Royce Lamberth, issued Aug. 23, temporarily halts the Obama administration from using federal dollars to expand stem cell research that destroys human embryos. Research groups across the country have attacked the ruling, saying it will affect ongoing research begun using previously created embryonic stem cell lines OK'd under the Bush administration.

Both administration policies responded to the 1996 Dickey-Wicker Amendment, which restricted federal funds for research that could destroy or damage human embryos. The Bush policy allowed research using a small number of cell lines already established, which was expanded by Obama last year. Two researchers challenged the Obama expansion last year, which led to the federal judge's injunction in late August.

Researchers say even if the majority of their work does not rely on embryonic stem cells, they still rely on previously established baselines from which to gauge their progress.