Curb cloning: Panel

a committee formed by the department of biotechnology has recommended a ban on human cloning. Apart from this, the committee has suggested that gene therapy should be resorted to only when all other options fall short of providing the expected result.

Outlining the importance of laying down ethics for the fast-growing field of genetic research, the rules drafted by the committee say that a dead foetus or an aborted embryo cannot be used for such research without the consent of the parents.

Informed consent is also mandatory when collecting samples for dna banking or for cell-line transformation of the biological material. The rules make it clear that the human genome, or any human material in its natural state, cannot become the subject of a direct financial gain.

While filing patents, it would now be compulsory to disclose the source of the material to safeguard the economic interests of the originaL source.