Question
To ask Her Majesty’s Government, further to the Written Answer by Viscount Younger of Leckie on 11 February (WA 99–100), whether they will place in the Library of the House a copy of the advice obtained from the Medical Research Council in which it was stated that researchers in Newcastle have overcome challenges associated with somatic cell nuclear transfer on the basis of insights gained from pronuclear transfer; and whether they will indicate when a detailed account of those advances will be provided by the researchers concerned; and in which future publication the data will be described. [HL380]
Answer
The advice obtained from the Medical Research Council (MRC) was essentially that stated in the original Answer.
A research paper describing further findings of the MRC grant to the University of Newcastle, Improving the Efficiency of Human Somatic cell Nuclear Transfer (SCNT) has been submitted for publication and is currently in scientific review. This paper was referred to on 5 November 2012 (WA 167-168) and 11 February 2013 (WA 99-100).
The manuscript submitted includes a detailed account of how the researchers have addressed some of the challenges associated with somatic cell nuclear transfer. Once the paper is published, the researchers will be in a position to provide further information on how the development of specific technical modifications were informed by their research on pronuclear transfer, which shared some of the technical challenges of somatic cell nuclear transfer.
Further information on the content of the paper and the journal cannot be provided at present as this may compromise publication. As the manuscript is currently in scientific review the likely date of publication is not known.