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Human Pluripotent Stem Cell Research Oversight at the University of Michigan
NB: This page was formerly called "Embryonic Stem Cell Research Oversight at the University of Michigan"
The Human Pluripotent Stem Cell Research Oversight (hPSCRO) Committee provides local oversight of ethical issues related to derivation and research use of human embryonic stem cells (hES cells). The hPSCRO also provides local oversight of research with human pluripotent stem (hPS) cells in experiments designed or expected to yield gametes (oocytes or sperm) or with the intent or potential to integrate these cells into the central nervous system of animals.
(The hPSCRO Committee was formerly known as the ESCRO Committee. The committee's name was changed as of December 19, 2008, in conjunction with an expansion of the committee's charge to include certain additional types of research with human pluripotent stem cells as identified above.)
Human Pluripotent Stem Cell (hPSC) Research Application
Review and approval by the hPSCRO committee is required for the procurement of and research with a human embryonic stem cell line regardless of the source of funding. For an hPSC Research Application, email the hPSCRO staff or call 734-615-8936.
About the committee
Research with human embryonic stem cells raises some profound ethical issues that appear regularly in public and political debate. The UM, like many of our peer institutions, has established an oversight committee modeled on the recommendations of the National Research Council report, Guidelines for Human Embryonic Stem Cell Research, and the 2008 Amendments to the National Academies' Guidelines for Human Embryonic Stem Cell Research.
The hPSCRO Committee operates within the overall tenets of the UM Policy on Research with Human Embryonic Stem Cells and Human Pluripotent Stem Cells (revised December 19, 2008) and is charged with providing local oversight of ethical issues related to derivation and research use of human embryonic stem cells (hES cells) as well as local oversight of research with human pluripotent stem (hPS) cells in experiments designed or expected to yield gametes (oocytes or sperm) or with the intent or potential to integrate these cells into the central nervous system of animals. Its work complements review functions of the IRBs and UCUCA by providing an additional level of coordination and review warranted by the complex issues raised by human pluripotent stem cell research.
Frequently Asked Questions
Related Links
- NIH Registry
- IRB MED
- UCUCA
- Michigan Center for hES Cell Research (UM)
- UM Life Sciences Institute Center for Stem Cell Biology
- Q&A on stem cells, Center for Stem Cell Biology
- Stem cell basics, NIH
Last reviewed: January 6, 2009.