UC San Francisco researcher Renee Reijo Pera has a well-equipped laboratory, generous funding and an ample staff of scientists working to create new lines of embryonic stem cells.
She has everything she needs to do cutting-edge work except one thing: fresh human eggs.
While the world debates the morality of stem cell research, scientists are grappling with a more basic issue -- a shortage of eggs that they say is crippling their work.
"Without eggs, there's no research," said Dr. Robert Lanza, medical director of the biotechnology company Advanced Cell Technology Inc.
Women routinely provide their eggs to fertility clinic patients, who pay $5,000 to $50,000.
But stem cell researchers are forbidden to pay for eggs by ethical guidelines from some of the most influential scientific organizations in the world, including the National Academies, which advises the U.S. government on scientific issues. California, Massachusetts, Canada, South Korea and the European Union all have passed laws barring payments.
Laurie Zoloth, a bioethicist at Northwestern University's Feinberg School of Medicine, said payments to donors would create an exploitative trade, taking advantage of women who might be so desperate for money that it clouded their judgment about the medical risks of the harvesting procedure. Bone marrow and kidney donors are unpaid for that reason, she said.
But stem cell researchers argue that it is only fair to pay donors because of the time, discomfort and risks involved. They note that research subjects are compensated for their time.
Researchers have so far complied with the payment restrictions, but the shortage has become so acute that some scientists are beginning to contest the ethical underpinnings of the status quo.
"We need to make a decision: Do you want the research to proceed or not?" Lanza said.
Though much stem cell research can be conducted without human eggs, they are key to one of the most important areas: the creation of stem cells that are genetically matched to patients.
These cells could generate replacement tissues for damaged hearts, spinal cords and other organs without requiring patients to take anti-rejection drugs. Researchers also say they would be able to create cells with the genes for specific disorders to study without risking a patient's safety.
