The University of Nebraska Board of Regents cast a tie vote on human embryonic stem cell research on Friday, defeating a rare effort to limit such research at a university system beyond what state and federal laws allow.
George Oberembt expressing support Friday in Lincoln, Neb., for limited stem cell research.
The 4-to-4 vote, which took place in Lincoln, in essence leaves the university’s policy in line with President Obama’s expansion of the research that federal money may cover. It was a major disappointment for groups that have led a sustained campaign against the research and saw the Nebraska fight as a possible new front in the national debate over the matter.
University administrators, meanwhile, described the decision as a victory that would allow them to continue attracting top scientists and applying for federal research grants in the field. They said those activities would be impossible if the university was limited to working with only the smaller number of stem cell lines allowed under President George W. Bush.
“I’m very happy for the citizens of Nebraska, who hopefully will now benefit from human embryonic stem cell research in Nebraska,” Dr. Harold M. Maurer, chancellor of the University of Nebraska Medical Center in Omaha, said after the crowded, tense meeting ended.
Supporters said embryonic stem cells, which can transform into nearly any type of tissue, hold unique potential for treating macular degeneration, diabetes, stroke and other ailments.
Opponents of the research, which requires the destruction of embryos to create the lines, argued that the study of adult stem cells and a newly developed process to reprogram adult stem cells so that they seem to mimic the nature of embryonic stem cells offer more — and more ethical — promise.
In Lincoln, in the end, one regent, Jim McClurg, whom opponents of the research had earlier expected to side with them and whom Nebraska Right to Life had once endorsed, voted against the proposal to limit the research. In part, Mr. McClurg cited a 2008 law on embryonic stem cell research passed by the Nebraska Legislature, and which had been seen by some as a compromise and a final answer to what had been years of debate there.
It was uncertain, though, whether even Friday’s decision would close the topic in the state. “Pro-lifers are a resilient bunch,” said Julie Schmit-Albin, executive director of Nebraska Right to Life. “We’re in this for the long haul. We’ll regroup and take a look at it and decide where to go.”
