Dow Jones Newswires
By Ellen Sheng
Of DOW JONES NEWSWIRES
NEW YORK -- The stem-cell research sector got a pop Monday after Pope John Paul II, meeting with President Bush, urged him not to allow federal funding for stem-cell research.
Shares of StemCell Inc. (STEM) were up 9.2% at $6.84 while those of Aastrom Biosciences Inc. (ASTM) were up 16.2% to $2.37. Shares of another company, Geron Corp. (GERN), were up 2.8% at $15.01.
In recent months, companies doing stem-cell research have benefitted from the public's piqued interest in the sector. Shares of have increased steadily over the past three months after hitting a low of $1.47 in April.
Aastrum Biosciences spokeswoman Kris Maly said that whenever stem-cell research is in the news, the company's stock benefits. "If federal funding were not allowed, I'm not sure it would negatively affect us," she said.
Neither StemCells nor Aastrom Biosciences does research on embryonic stem cells, and thus have avoided scrutiny over the most controversial aspect of stem-cell research.
StemCell officials were not immediately available for comment.
President Bush issued a statement Monday saying he would consider the Pope's views on stem-cell research after their meeting in Rome. The pope opposes any stem cell research specifically using embryos, saying such research destroys the embryo.
As expected, the pope urged Bush to bar using human embryos for medical research, saying the U.S. has a moral responsibility to reject actions that "devalue and violate human life."
Bush said he wasn't surprised by the pope's admonition and will take it into consideration as he makes his decision on whether to allow federal funding for such research. Bush said his decision revolves around "the need to balance value and respect for life with the promise of science in the hope of saving life."
Industry insiders said President Bush's decision and the events of the meeting are not as important as the attention companies have gotten and will continue to receive from the issue.
Just last week, it was revealed that former first lady Nancy Reagan wrote to President Bush appealing to continue federal funding of embryonic stem cell research. Many well-known scientists, activists and celebrities have come out in favor of the research, which many in medicine believe could lead to important breakthroughs in treatments.
Carl Gordon, an analyst with OrbiMed Advisors, told Dow Jones Newswires recently that StemCells has been attracting more of investors' buying interest because it doesn't actually use embryonic stem cells - but instead the much less controversial stem cells taken from adults.
Douglas Armstrong, chief executive of Aastrom Biosciences, said that embryonal stem cells are only a small part of the overall research effort. Aastrom, for example, does research on stem cells from bone marrow, umbilical cords and human blood that is derived from donors and patients.
Geron, which does perform research on embryonic stem cells, also saw its stock increase Monday, though not as much as Aastrom or Stemcells.
Stem cell research is being used to find treatments for Alzheimer's, Parkinson's Disease and diabetes, among other diseases.
-Ellen Sheng; Dow Jones Newswires; 201-938-5176;