(Washington, DC) - In a hearing before the Senate Judiciary committee today, Kris Gulden of Centreville, Virginia, testified in favor of legislation permitting somatic cell nuclear transfer, but banning reproductive cloning. Ms. Gulden testified on behalf of the Coalition for the Advancement of Medical Research (CAMR), the leading patient advocacy group supporting federal funding for embryonic stem cell research.

Gulden, a former triathlete and police officer, was spinal cord injured over three years ago while training for a three-day bike ride. Struck by a car from behind, she is now a level T-4 paraplegic.

In her testimony Gulden said, "I realize that today I am the voice of the millions of Americans living with MS, spinal cord injuries, ALS, Parkinson's Disease, and many other illnesses that may benefit from therapeutic cloning." She added, "I, along with the Coalition for the Advancement of Medical Research, support efforts to prohibit human reproductive cloning. It is imperative that we protect important areas of medical research that offer hope to millions of Americans?I do not expect a cure tomorrow, or even next year. And I do not intend to overstate the promise of the research. But how can you overstate hope?"

"Somatic cell nuclear transfer may prove to be a vital tool in allowing scientists to fully develop the promise of stem cell research," concluded Gulden.

Somatic cell nuclear transfer involves the use of a donor's unfertilized egg and a patient's own cells. The research could allow a patient's own genetic material to be used to develop stem cell therapies specifically tailored to that individual's medical condition, thus not triggering an immune rejection response. SCNT could repair patients with their own cells.

Given the scientific potential of somatic cell nuclear transfer research, the CAMR group strongly opposes any legislative or regulatory action that would ban research related to SCNT. This includes criminalizing the research or the researchers, and the prohibition of the importation of therapies derived from SCNT in other countries. CAMR supports efforts to prohibit human reproductive cloning while protecting important areas of medical research, including stem cell research.