Policy on stem cell research

Background

Stem cells are vital to the development of both animals and humans.They have several significant and unique features that distinguish them from other types of cells.Stem cells are unspecialised cells that can self-renew and under certain conditions, differentiate into specialised cells, such as a neuron or blood cell.Research into stem cells has resulted in a greater understanding of fundamental developmental biology, from embryonic development of an organism through to the repair of damaged cells in adults. Stem cell research has also led to current therapeutic treatments such as bone marrow transplants (involving adult stem cells) for leukaemia and research in this field has the long-term potential to provide treatments for a wide range of debilitating or life threatening conditions such as cancer, diabetes, Parkinson's and Alzheimer's disease.

Stem cells can be derived from a number of different sources in both humans and animals. They can be isolated from specialised tissues and organs (adult or somatic stem cells) as well as embryos (embryonic stem cells). At this time, an enormous amount of research is still required to understand how all types of stem cells function and to ascertain which types of cells may offer the greatest promise for the development of new therapies. Given this, the Wellcome Trust is willing to fund ethical and accountable research into all types of stem cells, in line with our general policy.

The Trust funds both animal and human stem cell research.This includes a variety of grants for large programmes, fellowships, PhD studentships and technology transfer initiatives. The Trust recognises that stem cell research raises a number of complex social and ethical issues and provides financial support for a range of activities to explore and debate these questions through its Biomedical Ethics Programme.

Wellcome Trust support for stem cell research

1. As with all scientific research funded by the Trust, stem cell research is funded on merit and scientific excellence after rigorous peer review.

2. The Trust expects the researchers it funds to conduct stem cell research according to high ethical standards and to comply with all applicable legal and regulatory requirements.Detailed guidance on these can be found in the UK Stem Cell Bank's 'Code of Practice for the use of Human Stem Cell Lines'.

3. The Trust recommends that the researchers it funds deposit a viable sample of every human stem cell line derived using Trust funding in an internationally recognised stem cell bank. The National Stem Cell Bank in the UK is an example of such a bank.

4. The Trust will only fund research outside of the UK that would be considered to be in line with current good practice and the principles of UK legislation.Where significant concerns are raised, by peer-reviewers, funding committees or Trust staff, on any application to support stem cell research, the Trust will refer the application to its Standing Committee on Ethics (SAGE) for independent advice.

5. The Wellcome Trust will, in principle, consider funding egg sharing schemes to provide human eggs for research, provided such schemes have received approval from appropriate bodies and the Trust is satisfied with the scientific merits and ethical aspects of individual applications, which it will evaluate on a case by case basis.

Further details

Q&A: Stem cells (BBC News item providing further information about stem cells)