After all the glowing media coverage of embryonic stem cell research, the bubble of unwarranted anticipation is beginning to burst. Most prominent is the discovery of research fraud committed by former professor Hwang Woo-suk in Korea. Hwang published a report in the medical journal Science in May 2005 relating how he successfully cloned human embryos and created patient-specific stem cells that would have avoided immune system rejection issues.

Accusations that he falsified the sources of the human eggs used for this research mushroomed into an investigation conducted by Seoul National University (SNU). This inquiry found that what was reported as groundbreaking embryonic stem cell research was totally fabricated. The results of this investigation are a major setback for this controversial research, which has yet to cure any patients.

The SNU panel of scientists charged with examining Hwang Woo-suk’s research said he deliberately fabricated the results of the embryonic stem cell studies. The panel explained that “the laboratory data for 11 stem cell lines that were reported in the 2005 paper were all data made using two stem cell lines in total.” This finding confirms that Hwang’s team did not successfully clone patient-specific embryonic stem cells.

Even more damaging, the SNU panel determined that Hwang’s team was not able to successfully clone human embryos at all. This breakthrough had been claimed in a 2004 paper Science published. “Hwang’s team did not have the data for the stem cell lines in the 2004 paper, but fabricated it,” Chung Myung-hee, the head of the panel, said.

Even prior to this most recent news challenging the lofty claims made about embryonic stem cell research, two states that have tried to allocate sizable public funding for this research ran into roadblocks. In California, the $6 billion slated for embryonic stem cell research by Proposition 71 has been stymied by lawsuits based on conflict of interest violations and other problems. Late in 2005 a judge ruled that two lawsuits filed against Proposition 71 should not be dismissed even though they’re holding up grants for research. The decision makes it likely that any significant grants for this life-destroying research will be blocked well into 2006.

In New Jersey, the legislature in early January shelved a proposal to spend millions on embryonic stem cell research in the state. The Assembly could not come up with enough votes for the $500 million research package that would have created new stem cell research facilities. Members were concerned about spending so much money at a time of financial concern for the state. Supporters intend to draft a package of new bills for the next legislative session. We can only hope that concerns about embryonic stem cell research will continue to prevent public funding of this unethical research.

Bill Beckman