Sheep cloner seeks human eggs

EDINBURGH, Scotland, May 22 (UPI) -- The Scottish scientist famous for creating Dolly, the world's first cloned sheep, has said he plans to ask for human egg donations for stem cell research.

Professor Ian Wilmut, from the Roslin Institute, is licensed to create cloned embryos from discarded eggs, or oocytes, left over from In Vitro Fertilisation therapy, but research announced last week suggested that IVF eggs, which are usually frozen after being removed from the woman, are unsuitable for producing cloned embryos.

Wilmut said he is seeking HFEA permission to collect fresh eggs from volunteers, the Scotsman reported Sunday.

The scientist also said he plans to work with Korean researchers who recently announced breakthroughs in growing stem cells cloned from patients. The team plans to work towards developing treatments for diseases including diabetes, Parkinson's disease, and Motor Neurone Disease.