A new breakthrough in stem cell research could eliminate the moral questions of embryo cloning and produce new and ethical treatments. Scientists in Japan and the U.S. have created the equivalent of embryonic stem cells from ordinary skin cells.

The complex and highly controversial idea of extracting stem cells from cloned embryos can be rivaled according to Japanese and American researchers who used simple lab techniques to produce their results.

Religious groups, ethicists and scientists have applauded the groundbreaking discovery which has begun to defuse one of the most controversial debates in contemporary medicine and religion.

“This work represents a tremendous scientific milestone