Germany must change its stem cell law to benefit from this innovative technology
This article was originally published in SRA
Executive Summary
Germany’s insistence on finding a consensus on embryonic stem cell research and its ban on the use of home-grown cell lines are hampering its ability to keep pace with other high-technology countries in this field. The stakes have been raised even higher of late, as US President Barack Obama has reversed the policy of the Bush era, and lifted the ban on stem cell research funding1. But the barriers to success for German researchers in this area are simultaneously legal, ethical and religious in nature.