Embryonic Stem Cell Research Oversight Committees
The National Academies called for the establishment of Embryonic Stem Cell Research Oversight (ESCRO) Committees in its 2005 "Guidelines for Human Embryonic Stem Cell Research" to manage the ethical and legal concerns in human embryonic stem cell research. Because of the complexity and novelty of many of the issues involved in that research, the Guidelines committee believes that all research institutions engaged in human embryonic stem cell research should create and maintain these committees at the local level.
Consumer Watchdog v. Wisconsin Alumni Research Foundation
On January 20, 1995, James Thomson filed an initial application for patent rights based on his pioneering work in isolating and maintaining long-lived culture of primate and human embryonic stem cells. As a result of this filing, the United States Patent and Trademark Office (USPTO) eventually issued three patents to Thomson, which were all later assigned to WARF: U.S. Patents Nos. 5,843,780 (December 1, 1998), 6,200,806 (March 13, 2001), and 7,029,913 (April 18, 2006). These patents are commonly referred to as the ‘780, ‘806, and ‘913 patents, respectively, and are all entitled “Primate Embryonic Stem Cells.”