Sept. 29, 2015 -- Although fetal tissue research has made headlines in recent months, the controversy about it is nothing new. Used in scientific studies since the 1930s, the tissue comes from induced abortions and miscarriages that would otherwise be discarded, according to the American Society for Cell Biology (ASCB).Fetal tissue research is legal in the United States.ndiana, Ohio, North Dakota, Oklahoma, and South Dakota ban studies involving tissue from aborted fetuses, and several other states are considering restricting or banning it, says Elizabeth Nash of the Guttmacher Institute, an abortion rights nonprofit organization in Washington, D.C.