American scientists are preparing to use stem cells in people for the first time, despite a recent ruling calling the federal funding of stem cells unconstitutional. In July, the FDA gave the scientists at Geron Corp. of Menlo Park, Calif, a green light to test some patients with a progressive form of blindness or who have been partially paralyzed by spinal cord injuries. The first trial will see 10 partially paralyzed people injected with 2 million cells created from embryonic stem cells. Critics say the experiments are premature and risk causing tumors. “There’s a lot of angst around these trials,” said Evan Y. Snyder, director of the stem cell program at the Sanford-Burnham Medical Research Institute in San Diego. “There’s going to be this perception that if the cells do not perform well, the entire field will be illegitimate.”
General
First tests for stem cell therapy near
U.S. trial to involve 10 partially paralyzed patients