The NIH Guidelines on Human Stem Cell Research (‘‘the NIH Guidelines’’), finalized in 2009, states that the NIH will consider funding research only on human embryonic stem cell lines derived from human embryos ‘‘created using in vitro fertilization for reproductive purposes and. no longer needed for this purpose.’’ Investigators who have derived a new hESC line must provide to the NIH a copy of the IVF patient consent for reproductive treatment, as well as the research consent form signed by the legal parents of the embryo. Once the NIH is satisfied that the parents created the embryo for
reproductive purposes and gave voluntary written informed consent for its use for research, the NIH lists the new line on the NIH Stem Cell Registry of funding-eligible lines. The NIH will not consider funding research on hESC lines not on the Registry. Because investigators at universities and nonprofit research institutes rely primarily on the NIH for funding for basic research, translational research, or both, these investigators primarily study the hESC lines on the NIH registry. Likewise, these nonindustry investigators who are deriving new lines utilize embryos from consented patients of fertility clinics so that any new line may be NIH eligible