A big step closer to human cloning

Human therapeutic cloning has moved a big step closer after US researchers said they had successfully created embyonic stem cells from monkey embryos.

In what would be a world-first breakthrough, scientists told a stem cell research conference in the Australian city of Cairns this week that they had successfully created two batches of embryonic stem cells from cloned rhesus monkey embryos.

"We've been looking for this evidence for a long time," Australian stem cell pioneer Alan Trounson said from the Melbourne-based Monash University Stem Cell Center.