Is Stem Cell Research Ethical?

Stem cells are cells that have the potential to develop into different types of cells in the body. Stem cells also act as a repair system for many tissues in the body by dividing repeatedly to replenish other cells within a person (National Institutes of Health). Stem cell research seeks to further the advancement of the use of stem cells as well as to find an ethical way to study them. In November 1998, researchers found a way to isolate and culture human embryonic stem cells, (Bevington 2005). The ethics of stem cell research has been debated over the years and some people fully support the use of stem cells, whereas others are completely against the use of stem cells. This has been an ongoing battle for scientists over the span of two decades prior to the 1998 finding.

Stem cells are a special group of cells found in all multicellular organisms. What makes them unique and different from other cells is the fact that they are unspecialized and have the potential to differentiate into diverse cell types while still maintaining the ability to replenish themselves. Generally, these cells are divided into 2 broad categories – the embryonic stem cells that are derived from the inner cell mass of the blastocyst and the adult stem cells that are harvested from the bone marrow, umbilical cord blood or the adipose tissue of an adult.

The introduction and expansion of embryonic stem cell research initiated a highly debated ethical topic. Can our society agree to disagree? What are embryonic stem cells? What are stem cells? Is all stem cell research considered abortion? Debates surrounding embryonic stem cell research is further complicated by social standards and needs, religious beliefs, and personal morals.

Stem cells are cells that are not specialized, and can become many different kinds of human tissue. There are two types of stem cells: Adult stem cells, which cannot form all tissues of the body, are found in

Stem cells are cells which can essentially form into any type of cell that can be found in the body. There are various types of stem cells. These include embryonic, adult, genetically reprogrammed adult stem cells, and perinatal stem cells. The most versatile, as well as controversial, type of stem cells are embryonic stem cells. These cells are found in 3-5 day old embryos which are formed through in vitro fertilization ("Stem Cell Basics" 1). While scientists have been able to reprogram adult stem cells to act as if they were embryonic, there is yet to be any conclusive evidence as to how the use of the altered cells will affect humans ("Stem cells: What they are and what they do" 1). The use of stem cells is largely focused on regenerative medicine which takes advantage of the stem cells versatility to create and replace damaged tissues in

“Now science has presented us with a hope called stem cell research, which may provide our scientists with many answers that have for so long been beyond our grasp.” (Nancy Reagan). Most cells within our bodies perform one specialized task. Contrary to these single job cells are stem cells. These cells are unspecialized and can morph and perform any task that is needed within the body. However, the way that stem cells are harvested has caused a lot of controversy. The way that the stem cells are taken destroys the embryo. We should support the recent decision to allow embryonic stem-cell research in the United States and federally fund the work to use these stem cells to cure diseases. Better stem cell research would provide safer procedures and medical practices for everyone.

“...neurons of the peripheral nervous system have a greater ability to regenerate. However...this is often both incomplete and inadequate.” (Kulraj et al, 2016)

There are a few different kinds of stem cells. These different type of stem cells depends on where it came from. As of now, there are only a couple sources for stem cell’s. The first kind of stem cells are adult stem cell. These adult stem cells can be obtained from specialized tissue in both children and adults. Since these cells are older, they are further along in the differentiation process, meaning they can only change into a few types of cells instead of the 200 that comes with embryonic stem cells. This is also called being pluripotent. (Miller

For starters, a stem cell is an undifferentiated cell that is capable of regenerating itself or becoming induced into a specific tissue or organ for specialized functions under certain physiological functions. All stem cells have the following three things in common: they are capable of renewing and dividing themselves over an extended period of time, they are not specialized, and they are able to give rise

Objection 1: Stem cells are unspecified cells studied by researchers which is an example of an analysis which was believed to be cost-benefit and ethical to the science world.

This day in age disease, infection, disorders and mysterious syndromes are more present now than ever. */***You forget to wash your hands after using the restroom? You just spread viruses like E.Coli and put someone 's life in danger*/***. But in a world full of diseases that are seemingly becoming harsher and more resistant to conventional treatments, answers to the latest ailments are popping up in the form of miniscule pieces biological tissue called stem cells. Stem cells are pluripotent cells that are present in all living organisms and have pi

Stem cell research has already identified potential diseases it could combat against; from Cancer to Alzheimer’s, Diabetes to Parkinson’s, Multiple Sclerosis to Huntington’s, and possibly many more. With such a wide array of possible beneficial outcomes of further researching stem cells, is it ethically sound? Or is this putting too much power in the hands of our scientist, who some believe are “playing god”? It is quite evident that there are great possibilities from further researching stem cells, but at what cost?

Stem cells can allow scientist to grow to replace tissue damage from heart disease, treat spinal cord and brain injury and could possibly treat serious diseases like diabetes, Parkinson's and Alzheimer's (source 5,7,9,10). While treatment, diagnosis and prevention of diseases have consistently been changing and finding new alternatives, stem cell research could be able to come up with a new approach in medicine that will be more comprehensive, integrated and highly individualized (source 10). Stem cell research can advance medicine dramatically and help much more people with critical

Stem cells form the initial origin of all specialized cells, including blood cells, brain cells, tissue cells, and nerve cells. The human body is abundant in stem cells where they play a vital role in the body by helping to create, replace, or repair body cells and tissues. Stem cells divide to form new cells and can remain as they are or morph in a different type of cell with a specialized function. Stem cell research has shown that its benefits greatly outweigh the risks, giving hope to cancer patients, burn victims, and many others.

Stem cells are undifferentiated cells that have the ability to become many different cell types by the process of mitosis and differentiation. Due to this unique property, many scientists are keen to researching and working with these cells. Furthermore, Stem cell is one of the most potential gates to curing diseases and developing new technologies.