A state bioethics committee will convene Friday to discuss whether to allow human somatic stem cell research to resume after a year's suspension in the wake of Dr. Hwang Woo-suk's research fabrication scandal.

The National Bioethics Committee said Thursday that it will seek to narrow differences between two proposals for the resumption.

One calls for allowing stem cell research only on eggs to be discarded, while the other calls for a ban until work with animal stem cells suggests that human stem cell research would be effective.

The panel said it will try to reach agreement on the controversy that has dragged on for nearly a year, but that it's too early to predict the results.