Disturbing News on Pepsi

I recently stumbled upon some interesting facts about Pepsi.. my dad researched it thoroughly and this is the report he wrote.  My question is "Is this even legal?  And what are the long term outcomes of all this?"  This is very disturbing both from an ethical standpoint and a moral standpoint.

REPORT

Unfortunately, I have learned the Christian community tends to readily accept conspiracies without thoroughly checking if there are any facts involved.  When I first heard of the idea of Pepsi, Kraft, and Nestle using aborted babies to create sweeteners, I thought this was most likely the case.  I did some investigation and have uncovered a few facts.  Below is what I have discovered and the citations so you can examine them for yourself.

Senomyx is a San Diego-based biotech research and development company.  They research new ways to improve food flavors by taking advantage of the mouth's taste receptors. The company uses isolated human taste receptors in the form of proteins to identify flavors and enhance them. (http://www.senomyx.com/). 

According to Laine Doss of the Miami New Times, “Gwen Rosenberg, vice president of investor relations and corporate communications for Senomyx, described the process as ‘basically a robotic tasting system.’ She depicted rows of little plastic square dishes with hundreds of tiny indentations in each dish. A protein is placed in each indentation, then a flavor. If the protein reacts to the flavor, the results are charted. If the new flavor (of which the company has more than 800,000) is successful with the protein test, the company then conducts taste tests with (live) adult humans.” (http://blogs.miaminewtimes.com/shortorder/2011/03/are_aborted_fetus_cells_helpin.php)

On the surface, it appears the story then is a conspiracy.  However, what is the “protein” placed in each indentation of the machine.  It appears this protein is something known as HEK293.  While the company denies their website mentions HEK293; they were issued a patent in 2008 for “Recombinant Methods for Expressing a Functional Sweet Taste Receptor," in which a line item mentions HEK293 (http://www.patentgenius.com/patent/7344859.html).

So what the heck is HEK293?  Human Embryonic Kidney 293 cells, also often referred to as HEK 293, are a specific cell line originally derived from human embryonic kidney cells grown in tissue culture. HEK 293 cells are very easy to grow and have been widely-used in cell biology research for many years. They are also used by the biotechnology industry to produce therapeutic proteins and viruses for gene therapy.

HEK 293 cells were generated in early 70s by Alex Van der Eb and Frank Graham in Leiden, The Netherlands. The human embryonic kidney cells were obtained from a healthy aborted fetus (reportedly to be 18-21 weeks old).  We know this because according to a report from the FDA, page 81 lines 14-22, “The fetus, as far as I can remember was completely normal. Nothing was wrong.”  (http://www.fda.gov/ohrms/dockets/ac/01/transcripts/3750t1_01.pdf)

There is some question as to whether the fetus came from an induced abortion or a spontaneous abortion.  However, given the nature of research, it does not seem likely the researchers sat around waiting for a spontaneous abortion to take place producing a healthy fetus whose cells could be harvested within minutes.  Additionally, Graham numbered his experiments, so the original HEK 293 cell clone was simply the product of his 293rd experiment.

So basically, in the 1970s scientists aborted babies to perform experiments on them, the results of which are a cell line used widely today in research, universities, and developing low-calorie, sugar-free soft drinks.  But to stop here would only be the tip of the iceberg of experimentation and harvesting of aborted babies.

Below is a list complied by the Vatican of vaccinations that are derived from aborted fetal tissues (http://www.cogforlife.org/vaticanresponse.pdf).

A) active vaccination against rubella:
- The monovalent vaccines against rubella Meruvax ® II (Merck) (USA), Rudivax ® (Sanofi Pasteur, Fr), and Ervevax ® (RA 27 / 3) (GlaxoSmithKline, Belgium);
- The combined vaccine MR against rubella and measles, marketed under the name of MR-VAX ® II (Merck, USA) and Rudi-Rouvax ® (AVP, France)
- The combined vaccine against rubella and mumps marketed under the name of Biavax ® II (Merck, USA)
- The combined vaccine MMR ( measles, mumps, rubella ) against measles, mumps and rubella vaccine, marketed under the name of MMR ® II (Merck, USA), ROR ® , Trimovax ® (Sanofi Pasteur, Fr) and Priorix ® ( GlaxoSmithKline, UK).
B) Other vaccines, also prepared using human cell lines from aborted fetuses:
- Two vaccines against hepatitis A, one produced by Merck (VAQTA), the other by Glaxo SmithKline (HAVRIX), both prepared using MRC-5;
- A vaccine against chicken pox, Varivax ® , produced by Merck using WI-38 and MRC-5.
- A vaccine against polio, polio vaccine with inactivated virus Poliovax ® (Aventis-Pasteur, Fr) using the MRC-5.
- A vaccine against rabies, Imovax ® , from Aventis Pasteur, harvested from infected human diploid cells, strain MRC-5;
- A smallpox vaccine, ACAM 1000, prepared by Acambis using MRC-5, still in testing.
Source: http://www.cogforlife.org/vaticanresponse.pdf

Other uses for aborted babies include a company named Neocutis who has developed and anti-aging cream made from Aborted fetal tissue. The truth of this can be read on their own company website: http://www.neocutis.com/modules.php?modid=2

Or in the Washington Times at:http://www.washingtontimes.com/news/2009/nov/03/aborted-fetus-cells-used-in-anti-aging-products/?source=newsletter_must-read-stories-today_headlines

As more aborted babies are used for vaccines, taste tests, gene therapy, and to look younger, the business of abortion demands for an increased supply of viable, healthy aborted babies.  The following two websites contain news articles from New Zealand and Australia where dead babies were harvested for viable fetal tissue:

New Zealand: http://www.nzherald.co.nz/health/news/article.cfm?c_id=204&objectid=3503775

Australia: http://www.newoman.org/noticias/articulo.phtml?id=1862

There are rumors aborted babies are also becoming big business in America as well, but these are presently just rumors I was unable to substantiate.  However, for the well-intentioned mother to be, a Planned Parenthood website offers women the opportunity to “donate” their aborted babies for undisclosed scientific purposes:

http://www.plannedparenthoodnj.org/library/topic/stem_cell_research/donating_fetal_tissue

(If you are interested in a more scholarly review of the ethics behind HEK293, go to: http://www.holyapostles.edu/bioethics/Ethics_HEK_293_credit_line.pdf)

Whether you take issue with the use of aborted babies for research/medical experimentation, development of vaccines, cosmetics, or low-calorie soda, it is your obligation to know why you believe and are doing what you are doing.  Whether you choose to boycott Pepsi, Kraft, or Nestle for aligning itself with a company (Senomyx) that uses cells originally taken from aborted babies, or choose to boycott them for proudly stating their products have earned the “U.S. GRAS (Generally Recognized As Safe) regulatory status,” is up to you.  Yes, you read that correctly, some of their taste receptors used in our food are “generally regarded as safe” while the ones that are not are shipped overseas for trials in countries without the FDA until enough people eat them and do not suffer harmful side-effects to earn the GRAS designation.  None of those ingredients are required to be listed on food labels either.

Finally, you may choose to agree with Ms. Doss of the Miami New Times: “I would rather see cells being cultivated and grown in labs for use in experiments than the heinous wholesale torture and experimentation on laboratory animals. True, some of the experimentation is frivolous (who gives a rat's ass about finding out if something is sweeter than sugar -- use sugar sparingly and let's call it a day), but evil? I think not. This seems like just another way the religious right wants to set science and progress back to the "good old days" -- when people died from the common cold and the only way you could sweeten your iced tea was with sugar.”

The ethical and moral decision is yours.  I have attempted to intentionally omit my personal conclusions on these issues, so as not to jade your conclusion.  I hope this information has provided a backdrop for you to help make an informed decision.