Biologists would like people to stop talking about "therapeutic cloning" because it gives too many the heebie-jeebies.

Instead, a group of biologists would like to refer to the process as "somatic nuclear cell transfer", New Scientist reports. This would distinguish the process of cloning embryos for harvesting stem cells from other kinds of cloning, such as reproductive cloning.

Researchers at the Genetics and Public Policy Centre in Washington surveyed 2,000 people, seeking their views on deriving stem cells from cloned embryos. They asked 1,000 whether or not they approved of using cloned embryos and 1,000 about their feelings towards somatic nuclear cell transfer (SNCT).

The half asked about SNCT were far more likely to approve of the process, with 49 per cent giving it the thumbs up, compared to 29 per cent in the cloning group.

Alone, this might have been encouraging, but the researchers also asked about using SCNT to make a baby.

Again, the new terminology elicited a much more positive response raising the approval rating, from 10 to 24 per cent, suggesting that people are more likely to approve of something if they don't really know what it is. ®

Related stories

• US biotech firm in new human cloning claim (18 January 2008)
• Post-Bush US preparing stemcell brain drain (28 September 2007)
• German boffins make sperm cells from bone marrow (13 April 2007)
• Don't do a Bush on stem cells, urge MPs, scientists, doctors (5 April 2007)
• Geneticists report 'semi-identical' twins (27 March 2007)
• Stem cells face second Bush veto (11 January 2007)
• US to approve cloned meat (28 December 2006)
• Researchers propose human-cow hybrid (7 November 2006)
• Britney's half-eaten sarnie regurgitates onto eBay (31 August 2006)
• Korean scientist tried to clone mammoths (26 July 2006)
• Scientists sideline Bush opposition to stem cell research (7 June 2006)
• US pro-stem cell mission ready for fight (2 June 2006)