Part-human embryos get nod

London: Scientists and patient groups on Wednesday welcomed a decision by Britain's fertility regulator to allow scientists to create part-human, part-animal embryos.

The Human Fertilisation and Embryology Authority (HFEA) ruled that research using cytoplasmic hybrids - made using eggs from rabbits or cows that have had their nucleus replaced with human genetic code - should be permitted.

British scientists want to use the technique to create embryonic stem cells so they can study the causes of and develop treatments for diseases such as Alzheimer's, Parkinson's, cystic fibrosis, motor neurone disease and Huntington's. The HFEA was due to rule on the research applications in January but instead announced a public consultation which found 61 per cent of the public in favour of the research.

Dr Belinda Cupid, of the Motor Neurone Disease Association, said: "This position by the HFEA is very encouraging.

No cure

There is currently no cure for MND, but allowing the use of hybrid and chimera embryos in scientific research may revolutionise the future treatment of this disease and other degenerative conditions. "The case for the use of human-animal hybrid embryos in stem cell research is compelling as it holds the potential to save lives." Rebecca Wood, chief executive of the Alzheimer's Research Trust, said: "This decision could speed up progress towards treatments in the future."

Dr Stephen Minger, at King's College, London, and Dr Lyle Armstrong, at the North East England Stem Cell Institute in Newcastle, applied to the HFEA to carry out research involving the creation of cytoplasmic hybrids, also known as cybrids, last year.

Dr Minger said on Wednesday: "These techniques provide the only ethically justifiable option given the large numbers of eggs required to derive cloned human stem cell lines from individuals with incurable and progressive neurological disorders."

Opponents of the research, who claim it is unnecessary and unethical, believe the HFEA does not have the powers to give the go-ahead for such work. The Lawyers' Christian Fellowship and Comment on Reproductive Ethics will meet with their advisers to discuss seeking a judicial review.

Law to retain ban on true hybrids

The Human Fertilisation and Embryology Authority was due to rule on the research applications in January but instead announced a public consultation which found 61 per cent of the public in favour of the research.

In May the Government published its draft Human Tissue and Embryos Bill, which proposed allowing the creation of cybrids, but retaining the ban on "true hybrids", in which the sperm from one species fertilises an egg from another. Ian Pearson, the science and innovation minister, said on Wednesday night: "I share the view of the scientific community that the creation of cytoplasmic hybrid embryos offers an important experimental tool."