March 6, 2001

The Honorable George W. Bush
President of the United States
The White House
1600 Pennsylvania Ave., NW
Washington, DC 20500-0004

Dear Mr. President:

On behalf of the Board of Directors of the American Association for the Advancement of Science (AAAS), the largest multidisciplinary scientific society in the world, we write to express our strong support for federal funding of research using human pluripotent stem cells. The discovery of such cells, capable of giving rise to virtually any tissue type, may be the most important scientific and medical breakthrough in the past decade or more. Research on these cells could result in treatments or cures for the millions of Americans suffering from many of humanity's most devastating illnesses, including Alzheimer's disease, diabetes, spinal cord injury, and heart disease. AAAS is committed to working with you and others in the government to support research that holds the promise of new treatments and cures for disease and disability as well as increasing our understanding of the basic biology of human development. Such basic research will improve our understanding of birth defects and contribute to the development of new drugs targeted at specific diseases.

In November 1999, AAAS issued a report on stem cell research based on many months of study and the advice of a highly diverse and experienced advisory group that included ethicists and theologians as well as scientists. We are pleased to enclose a copy of the report. Among the report's key Findings and Recommendations are that "Public and private research on human stems cells derived from all sources (embryonic, fetal, and adult) should be conducted" and
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Contact: Nisha Narayanan
nnarayan@aaas.org
202-326-6434
American Association for the Advancement of Science
24-Jul-2001