The government will draft as early as this year laws on human egg donations in the wake of the escalating ethics controversy surrounding stem cell pioneer Hwang Woo-suk.

A Health and Welfare Ministry official on Tuesday said the bioethics law will be revised or a new presidential order will lay out concrete legal regulations given the urgent nature of the issue.

Reports say Hwang's research team paid for human eggs, leading American researcher Gerald Schatten to end his ties with the Seoul National University professor.

The government's comprehensive guidelines will draw a clear line between donated and purchased eggs and decide on the legality of accepting donations from a designated person or relatives.

The ministry official said a general legal code on bioscience over the mid-to-long term will come after a statute on egg donations is prepared this year.