It would be hard to overstate the excitement scientists at UW-Madison and elsewhere felt when President Barack Obama signed an executive order lifting restrictions on taxpayer-funded research using human embryonic stem cells.
Among those in attendance at the White House on March 9, 2009 for the presidentâ??s announcement were Jamie Thomson, UW-Madisonâ??s world-renowned stem cell pioneer, and Clive Svendsen, then the co-director of UW-Madisonâ??s Stem Cell and Regenerative Medicine Center.
….But a year later much of that excitement has been replaced by hand-wringing, with many scientists complaining that Obama’s new stem cell policy is creating new barriers and jeopardizing years of experimentation.