Stem Cell Research

We know that many have made expansive claims for the benefits of human embryo research. However, all such claims are conjectural. Embryonic stem cell research has not helped a single human patient or demonstrated any therapeutic benefit. At the same time, adult stem cells have helped hundreds of thousands of patients and new

In November of 1998, a group of researchers announced that they had successfully isolated and grown a special kind of cell with the potential to develop into virtually any kind of human tissue. The scientists had made the discovery of embryonic stem cells. The discovery was considered to be an innovative

Attempts were made to fertilize mammalian eggs outside of the human body and in the early 1900s, it was discovered that some cells had the ability to generate blood cells. In 1968, the first bone marrow transplant was performed to successfully to treat patient’s severe combined immunodeficiency. There have been many stem cell discoveries since the early 1900’s but the two majors were in 1998 when, Thompson, from the University of Wisconsin, isolated cells from the inner cell mass of early embryos and developed the first embryonic stem cell lines. Then, in 1999 and 2000, scientists discovered that manipulating adult mouse tissues could produce different cell types.

Research involving human embryonic stem cells and human non-embryonic stem cells has the potential to lead to better understanding and treatment of many disabling diseases and conditions. Advances over the past decade in this promising scientific field have been encouraging, leading to broad agreement in the scientific community that the full range of promising stem cell research should be supported by Federal funds. (White House)

Stem cells were first discovered during an experiment with mice in 1981 ("Stem Cell Information"). Scientists extracted stem cells from embryonic mice, which led to the discovery of vitro-fertilization in 1998. Virto fertilization is used to conceive a child in a laboratory, for parents who cannot conceive naturally. The fertilized egg is then implanted inside a mother's uterus and a child begins to form. Without the discovery of stem cells, this process might not have been able to give parents the children they have always wanted ("Stem cells: What they are and what they do"). However, this is causing some controversy in today's society. Embryonic stem cells are obtained from embryos not placed inside a female. Researchers felt it could harm or even kill the undeveloped child, so they felt the only solution was to grow the fertilized eggs in laboratories. The embryos are grown in labs with consent from their donors. The stem cell obtained from these embryos are being used to benefit burn victims so they could grow healthy skin, people with spinal cord injuries so they could have the chance to walk again and even people with type I diabetes to help produce their own insulin. If these cells are able to be manipulated enough, there might even be a cure for cancer or any other heart breaking diseases wrecking havoc today (Mayo Clinic Staff). Stem cells are also

Stem cell research and engineering is a widely disputed topic that often divides people in science, ethics, and religion. In order to fully understand the controversy surrounding this area of scientific research and discovery, one must be informed as to what stem cells are. In the article, “Human Embryonic Stem Cells: Research, Ethics and Policy”, stem cells are described as “primitive cells with the capacity to divide and give rise to more identical stem cells or to specialize and from specific cells of somatic tissues” (Wert 672). Essentially, stem cells can potentially provide an unlimited supply of cells that could form some or all body cells. This ability to transform into different types or all types of cells depends of the type of stem cell, which can be divided into embryonic stem cells and adult stem cells (Bishop 1). Embryonic stem cells are extracted from preimplantation embryos and are pluripotent, meaning they possess the ability to form cells of all tissues in the adult human body. Adult stem cells, however, are limited to what tissues they can transform into.

Stem cells make up every organ and tissue that reside inside the human body. These cells help to regenerate and replace defective tissues and cells that are injured and destroyed within our body everyday. Former President, George W. Bush, felt so strongly opposed to the development of this research that he cast the first veto of his presidency when Congress tried to broaden the scope of the Stem Cell Research Enhancement Act of 2007. In this veto he stated that, “This bill crosses a moral line that I and others find troubling.” (1)

“At its core, this issue forces us to confront fundamental questions about the beginnings of life and the ends of science. It [stem cell research] lies at a difficult moral intersection, juxtaposing the need to protect life in all its phases with the prospect of saving and improving life in all its stages.” George W. Bush in his address at the Bush Ranch in Texas precisely captures the essence of the issues surrounding stem cells. “Stem cells are undifferentiated cells that have the capability of self replication as well as being able to give rise to diverse types of differentiated or specialized cell lines.” (Stien). Researching these cells can lead cures some of the most devastating ailments. Despite the research’s vast

Scientists are interested in stem cells for their ability to become any type of cell in the body, a process called differentiation. Theoretically, this allows for limitless possibilities in disease

Stem cell research has evolved ever since stem cells were first discovered. During the 1900s, stem cell research reached a new horizon. In 1978, stem cells were discovered in human cord blood. Because of this breakthrough, they were then able to use the cord blood to treat cancer or genetic blood diseases (EuroStemCell, 2012). In 1981, the first in vitro stem cell line was developed from mice. This slowly progressed to hamsters in 1988 and primates in 1995 (Murnaghan, 2016). These key events helped today’s scientists start many research studies. These research studies have brought forth numerous leads on different cures and treatments for diseases. If federal

The phrase “stem cell” calls to mind images of controversy: Pro-life picketers outside abortion and in-vitro fertilization clinics, patients with chronic disabilities waiting on a cure, scientists in a lab experimenting with a petri dish. These cells offer unimaginable opportunities for regenerative medicine because they can retain the ability to differentiate. Stem cells are classified as either adult or embryonic. Embryonic stem cells can

Stem Cells can have a colossal impact on the human race if researched enough and used to their full capability. As President George Bush said "A n ethicist ... told me that [a] cluster of cells is the same way you and I, and all the rest of us, started our lives. One goes with a heavy heart if we use these [embryonic stem cells], he said, because we are dealing with the seeds of the next generation." These cells can transition into any cell it would like (AAPI). In the 1800 's stem cells started to get researched and that is when it was discovered that the cell could form other types of cells. In early 1900 's European researchers noticed that white and red blood cells came from the first cell. In 1963 was the first writings of the stem cell renewing of transplanted mouse bone marrow cells were documented by Canadian researchers Ernest A. McCulloch and James E. Till. Adult stem cell research into animals and humans have been ongoing

Adult stem cells are difficult to extract, already specialized, multiply slower and difficult to work with, this difficulty has pushed most researchers to study embryonic stem cells and as a result most research done so far has been on embryonic stem cells derived from donated embryos. In the process of obtaining stem cells, the embryo is destroyed and this procedure can be seen as destroying a human life if one believes that life begins at conception. This method of obtaining stem cells has generated much

Stem cells are unspecialized cell that can both reproduce itself indefinitely and, under appropriate conditions, differentiate into specialized cells of one or more types. (Reece, Jane B., and Lisa A. Urry, 2011.) The term “stem cells” were first seen in scientific literature in 1868, a German biologist Ernst Haeckel used this term to describe the fertilized egg that becomes an organism. On February 2, 1963 the firs piece of evidence of blood stem cells appear, Ernest McCulloch and James Till conducted experiments on the bone marrow of mine and observed that different blood cells come from a special class of cells. In 1981, pluripotent stem cells are obtained from embryos of mice and are the first embryonic stem cells ever to be isolated. In 1989, Mario Capecchi, Martin Evans, and Oliver Smithies created mice which are missing specific genes. They created the mice using embryonic stem cells and homologous recombination. In 2007, they were recognized by the Nobel Assembly because their experiment proved to be an irreplaceable piece of evidence to understand how various human disease such as diabetes and cancer develop. On November 6, 1998 the first batch of embryonic stem cells that originated from early embryos. Then eleven years later, President Obama signed an executive order to repeal some restrictions on human embryonic stem cells research funds. On July 4, 2009, the National Institutes of Health had to create new guidelines on federal funding for stem research.

In recent years, there has been a lot more talk about stem cell research than ever before. The idea of stem cells arose in the 1960 's, with the first successful bone marrow transplant in 1968. Now, stem cell research is a widely known topic in biotechnology and shows a substantial amount of scientific promise. The future of stem cell research and the impact it could have follows with many questions on people 's minds, as well the simple curiosity of what stem cells are and how they can affect people both positively and negatively. There are quite a few areas of discussion about stem cells, and this essay addresses seven of the many questions concerning stem cell research.