By Jung Sung-ki
Staff Reporter

The ruling Uri Party plans to establish a special committee on ethics of biotechnology research and supportive measures to help beleaguered stem cell pioneer Hwang Woo-suk continue his experiments in pursuit of a scientific breakthrough, a spokesman said Friday.

``All of the party lawmakers have agreed to lend full support for Prof. Hwang so as not to deter him from continuing his landmark studies,’’ Rep. Jun Byung-hun, spokesman for the ruling party, said in a briefing at the National Assembly.

``So we will make efforts to come up with a package of supportive measures, including the establishment of stem cell research guidelines, and implement them as soon as possible,’’ he said.

Rep. Kim Myung-ja will head the ad hoc committee, which will be composed of other lawmakers, mostly former presidents of universities, and civic experts, said the spokesman.

``Currently, there is no international role model for bioethics as South Korea is at the very frontier in the field of biotechnology. That’s why our country should first set up clear guidelines on our own,’’ Kim said.

One of the supportive measures is to spend research funds in studying the ethics problems and building social systems for ethics guidelines, modeled after those of the Human Genome Project, she added.

Seoul National University (SNU) professor Hwang, one of the world’s leading experts in stem cell research, resigned his positions at state-run and non-governmental agencies, including the SNU’s World Stem Cell Hub (WSCH) on Thursday, admitting that he had used eggs from two of his subordinates in his study.

The practice of procuring eggs from female team members is widely viewed as off-limits because of the potential for subtle coercion, given the hierarchal structure of lab research, something particularly true in Confucian-influenced South Korea.

SNU Hospital president Sung Sang-cheol, however, said he will empower Hwang to lead the stem cell bank despite the egg donor scandal.

``Someone else will lead the hub for the time being, but Hwang is going to be reinstated in the post soon for his research,’’ Sung said. ``In fact, there is no alternative to replace Hwang who has an extensive global network in stem cell research.’’

The WSCH was set up last month to facilitate an international collaboration to supply laboratories worldwide with cloned embryonic stem cells.

On the first day of registration for the WSCH, some 3,300 patients with a variety of incurable illnesses, such as Parkinson’s disease and spinal cord injuries, enrolled to offer their stem cells for research.

Meanwhile, the government’s bioethics committee is scheduled to hold a meeting with the Institutional Review Board at SNU, which was in charge of investigation of Hwang’s case, to discuss ways of enhancing transparency in the stem cell research next Monday.

South Korean people overwhelmingly support Hwang. Earlier this week women from all walks of life set up a private foundation to donate their eggs for the scientist’s groundbreaking research in the future.

In online polls on several Internet portal sites, more than 90 percent of users expressed support for Hwang, and more than 200 women say they would donate egg cells.

Hwang stole the global spotlight in February 2004, when his laboratory produced the word’s first cloned human embryo. Hwang’s team then developed the first patient-specific embryonic stem cells, which world experts praise since they are expected to open the door to therapeutic cloning that can cure many degenerative diseases, such as Alzheimer’s.

Earlier this year, Dr Hwang made Snuppy, the world’s first cloned dog.

gallantjung@koreatimes.co.kr