Bioethicist quits job at controversial stem cell outfit

He came, he saw, he quit. Bioethicist Glenn McGee has resigned from his post at stem cell company Celltex Therapeutics after just three months on the job. He announced his departure from the company that has been accused of unethical use of stem cells on Tuesday, according to his Twitter account. Nature broke the news of McGee's resignation on Thursday.

"Enough. I resigned from #Celltex Therapeutics on & effective 2/28/2012. I am preparing timely, lengthy, pointed comments on the whole matter," he wrote on Twitter.

Houston-based Celltex had just announced McGee's joining the company as president of ethics and strategic initiatives on Feb. 13. As Nature reports, McGee, founder of The American Journal of Bioethics, took flak from his peers in the bioethics community over his taking the position at Celltex while still serving as an editor for the journal.

Celltex faced controversy of its own over accusations that the company, which says it provides adult stem cell banking and multiplication services, has peddled stem cells for illegal use in humans, Nature reported. McGee hasn't made public why he's leaving Celltex, but the "timely, lengthy, pointed" comments he's preparing should make for interesting reading.

- check out the Nature article