EU to allow research on fetuses

ETHICAL guidelines that will permit the use of five-day-old foetuses for scientific research were agreed by the European Commission yesterday.

The fertilised eggs, left over from in vitro fertility treatments and frozen for at least a year, could be used for stem cell research.

These basic cells, from which all of the body's tissue and organs grow, may help cure Alzheimer's, Parkinson's and diabetes, researchers say.