Josephine Quintavalle, of the pro-life group Comment on Reproductive Ethics, said it was "risky, dangerous" and a step towards "designer babies".

BBC: RELATED BBC SITES

But Josephine Quintavalle, director of Comment on Reproductive Ethics (Core), which opposes embryonic stem cell therapies, dismissed the research as "highly speculative".

BBC: Green light for US stem cell work

However, Mrs Quintavalle is queasy about research she views as meddling with human life, and fears it could create more problems than it solves.

BBC: NEWS | Health | 'Our aim is to help children'