Hwang Woo-suk, a prominent embryonic stem-cell scientist said Thursday he resigned as head of a global hub for stem-cell work after admitting two female scientists in his lab donated their own eggs for research, which caused allegations of ethics violations.

"I am very sorry to speak about such shameful and miserable things to people," he told a news conference.

Hwang said he believes ethics and science are the "wagon wheels" that push humanity into the future, but he did not have deep thoughts on the issues of ethics.

"As of today, I am resigning from the chairmanship of the World Stem Cell Hub and all other official responsibilities I held at government and social organizations. It is my way of seeking repentance," he said with tears in his eyes.

It was his first public comments on the stem-cell controversy that has been brewing for months concerning the origin of ova used in his research.

Hwang, a veterinary professor at Seoul National University, gained worldwide attention for his breakthroughs in cloning the world's first human embryos and extracting stem cells from them.

In August, Hwang's team again stunned the world by announcing it had succeeded in producing the first cloned dog, saying the cloning was designed to help investigate human disease, including the possibility of cloning stem cells for treatment. Time magazine called Hwang's cloning of a dog this year's most amazing invention.

When South Korea opened the World Stem Cell Hub, headed by Hwang, in October to create and supply new lines of embryonic stem cells for scientists, tens of thousands of people flooded the institute to submit patient registration requests.

But Hwang lost much of his sheen as a pioneering stem-cell scientist as he became caught in a swirl of allegations over his work after a U.S. collaborator quit the group, accusing Hwang of unethically procuring human eggs.

The controversy was fueled this week when a local television reported that ova used in Hwang's work was acquired by paying compensation to donors and that two of the team's researchers gave their eggs, saying such actions collide with global ethics guidelines.

In the news conference, Hwang said he had become aware earlier this year the researchers had donated egg cells to advance his research against his advice. Hwang said he has denied the donations were made for the sake of the donors' privacy, adding he regretted not having told the truth at that time.

Hwang was also provided 242 eggs from 16 donors from Roh Sung-il, head of MizMedi infertility hospital in Seoul. He did have some worries about the process of egg procurement, but did not raise the issue after he was told there was no problem in obtaining them.

Hwang said he was told by Roh late last month that the eggs were procured at $1,450 each.

"I again sincerely apologize for having caused concern at home and abroad," he said.

Hwang also expressed concerns the incident may damage his stem-cell work.

"I ask the public not to let this incident cause the country to miss out on an important opportunity," he said.

Hwang's resignation has triggered concerns that his ground-breaking stem-cell research may be hindered, while some civic and religious activists called for scientists to firmly stick to ethical standards.

"Any ethics dispute should not hinder professor Hwang's research. Think about millions of patients who hope to cure hard-to-treat diseases with the trailblazing cloning technology," said Jung Ha-gyun, who leads a group of people afflicted with spinal cord injuries.

"There are 130,000 patients with spinal cord injuries in South Korea. Some 700,000 people are suffering from other serious chronic conditions like cerebral palsy, Parkinson's," Jung said. "We hope professor Hwang to advance his research ignoring the ethics dispute," he said.

Hong Jong-hwa said he spent the past 20 years in tears because of a traffic accident.

"Professor Hwang has revived my hope to walk again," he said in a wheelchair in a Seoul hospital.

Hwang's cloning of the first human embryo for research had led to the possibility of building custom-tailored stem cells to cure severe spinal cord injuries.

The Ministry of Health and Welfare backed Hwang's research by announcing he had done no wrong.

"There were no breaches of legal or ethical standards in the course of obtaining human eggs for the research," a spokesman for the Ministry of Health and Welfare told a news conference Thursday. The ova were voluntarily donated by members of Hwang's research team for studies seeking therapies for intractable diseases, he said in a statement.

An increasing number of women have said they want to donate their eggs for Hwang's research. A private foundation was launched this week to facilitate legal and ethical donations of ova for research purposes. Since then, more than 70 women have promised to contribute their eggs.

"I hope to be able to help Dr. Hwang because he is working hard for patients with intractable diseases," Kim Jae-hong, who is willing to donate her ova, said on the foundation's Web site. Kim, her sister and her mother pledged to donate their ova to Hwang's team.

According to recent public surveys, 70 to 80 percent of those polled said ethical codes must be eased for scientific research. Some 77 percent of the people said donation of the ova is not illegal and unethical, according to a survey by conducted Seoul's polling agency Research & Research and SBS-TV.

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