Stem Cell Pioneer Joins Forces with Stem Cell Fraudster

The scientist who once fraudulently claimed to have created embryonic stem cells matched to human patients and the one who really did it plan to conduct joint research, a Korean newspaper reported this morning. A Chinese regenerative medicine company will provide financial support, according to the account.

The two scientists would seem an odd match. In 2006, Woo Suk Hwang had to retract two papers published in Science in which his team claimed it had used the technique employed in cloning Dolly the sheep to create human embryonic stem cells matched to specific people who had various diseases.    After investigators determined all the claims were bogus, Hwang was fired from Seoul National University and later convicted of embezzling research funds and bioethics violations. He escaped jail time with a suspended sentence. Since his downfall, Hwang has quietly continued his cloning work on animals, particularly pet dogs, at Seoul-based Sooam Biotech Research Foundation, a private institute friends established specifically for him.

Despite his claims being deemed fraudulent by a Seoul National University panel, Hwang was awarded an...