title: New rules for embryo research: bill C-56 and the Canadian Institutes of Health Research stem cell research guidelines.
abstract: On 4 March 2002, the Canadian Institutes of Health Research (CIHR) released their guidelines for human pluripotent stem cell research. The guidelines set out the conditions for publicly funded stem cell research, and include limitations on acceptable sources of embryos for deriving stem cells. Two months later, the Government of Canada tabled Bill C-56, governing assisted human reproduction, which will also restrict the sources of embryos for research and require that all fertility clinics and embryo researchers be licensed. These two documents strike a middle ground between the current restrictive rules for publicly funded research in the United States and the more permissive rules for both publicly and privately funded research in the United Kingdom. Both documents restrict the source of embryos for research to those that were originally created for assisted reproduction purposes but are no longer required for such purposes. Therefore, under both the guidelines and Bill C-56 (if it becomes law), an efficient and cooperative relationship between fertility services providers and embryo researchers will be necessary if researchers in Canada are to continue to work with the human embryo in fields such as stem cell research.
mesh_terms: D002170:Canada; D004622:Embryo, Mammalian; D004992:Ethics, Medical; D005260:Female; D005307:Fertilization in Vitro; D006801:Humans; D007883:Legislation, Medical; D017410:Practice Guidelines as Topic; D011247:Pregnancy; D012106:Research / Q000331:legislation & jurisprudence* / Q000592:standards*; D013234:Stem Cells