Brussels, 15/09/2006 (Agence Europe) - It is extremely rare for a report to be defeated at the committee stage in the European Parliament. That, however, is what happened on 14 September to the report by Slovakian Christian Democrat MEP Miroslav Mikolasik on innovative therapies, defeated by 31 votes to 26, with 5 abstentions. At issue was the scope of the regulation introducing a centralised procedure (through the European Medicines Agency in London) for the authorisation of medicines developed from genetics and cell and tissue engineering. Initially, conservative MEPs and those who wish to slow the rate of scientific progress managed to have a number of amendments passed recommending a ban on chimeras and other hybrids, and to obtain a reminder of the ban on the sale of human bodies and body parts and the ban on modifications of the germ line. At first sight, this ethical framework would appear to be one that could be a generally accepted minimum. MEPs most in favour of scientific progress, however, felt these amendments overly restricted the scope of the regulation and voted the report down. Mr Mikolasik, or some other rapporteur, will now have to review the text.