The world’s first authorized test in people of a treatment
derived from human embryonic stem cells has been cleared to
begin by the Food and Drug Administration. The trial will test
cells developed by Geron Corporation and the University of
California, Irvine in patients with new spinal cord injuries.
The F.D.A. had initially cleared the clinical trial in January
2009, in what was viewed at the time as a research milestone.
But before the study could begin, the agency then put a so-
called hold on the trial after cysts were discovered in some
mice injected with the cells. Geron had to do another mouse
study and develop better ways to check the purity of its cells.
On Friday, the company announced in a press release that the
F.D.A. had lifted the hold. Geron shares rose in morning
trading. Embryonic stem cells can turn into any type of cell in
the body. Scientists envision one day making replacements for
injured or diseased tissues to treat a wide variety of
illnesses. Clarification: but the cells have been con