Abstract Stem cells and cloning are very controversial today. There are debates and arguments about it all over the internet. The idea of stem cells is to use them to help cure and prevent diseases. You can use embryonic and adult stem cells. That’s one of the reasons people argue about it, because it kills the potential life of the embryo. [Stem Cells and Cloning] Stem cells and cloning is very controversial in today 's society. Some people believe it’s not a good idea because it destroys embryos (Thomas Berg, 2006). On the other hand, some believe that “the goal is to turn some of these in to embryonic stem cells that would be a perfect genetic match to a sick patient.” (Julia Cort, 2006). Unique properties …show more content…
Human embryonic stem cells (hESCs) are generated by transferring cells from a preimplantation-stage embryo into a plastic laboratory culture dish that contains a nutrient broth known as culture medium.” Both types of cells have advantages and disadvantages when being used for cell-based regenerative therapies. One major difference between adult and embryonic stem cells is their different abilities in the number and type of differentiated cell types they can become. Embryonic stem cells can become all cell types of the body because they are pluripotent. Adult stem cells are thought to be limited to differentiating into different cell types of their tissue of origin (National Institutions of health, 2016). Current sources There are three different places you can find embryonic cells: cell lines that exist already, left over from fertility treatment, and making custom ones by somatic cell nuclear transfer. Potential uses in biomedical research Julia Cort (2006) says “The Jaenisch team set out to eliminate that potential. First, they took a tiny bit of skin from a mouse 's tail and let it grow in culture. With the skin cells growing in a Petri dish, Meissner concocted a special virus and added it to the skin cells. The virus went to work and inserted an extra bit of DNA into the skin cell DNA. Meissner performed the cloning, sucking up a skin cell now containing the extra DNA and transferring it into a mouse egg. And then the team waited and
What if there was a way to cure previously in-curable diseases with the help of something in the very first stages of human life, but thousands upon thousands of lives had to be taken to perfect the use of this material? That is exactly what is happening with embryonic stem cells around the world. Pro-life activists, who originally organized to stop the abortions of unborn fetuses, were most angered with the process of actually destroying an embryo solely for research purposes. However, scientists, such as Dr. Andrew Yeager of the University of Pittsburgh, argue that embryonic stem cells are the future of medicine. “This is really where, I think, so much of biomedicine is going to be going in the twenty
Controversy surrounding research and therapeutic use of stem cells has been a contentious and socially polarizing matter for a few decades. Arguments lie largely between the scientific community and the general public, although intragroup disagreements also persist today. These disparate views for and against stem cells arise out of the bioethical implications of an inchoate innovation, the general public’s tenuous understanding of the underlying technology itself, and sociopolitical ideologies. Due to the somewhat aged debate, recent revelations and advancements have changed the principle arguments and should be addressed accordingly.
“How can the use of stem cells be so controversial?”, one may ask. If the stem cells are donated out of free will or were going to be destroyed anyway, how can putting them to better use be controversial? Sure, a potential life must be destroyed to save a life, but only before one can tell that it is a human. Should the use of stem cells for medical research and use be regulated? These questions and more will be discussed and pondered throughout this paper.
Embryonic stem cells have the ability to grow into any type of cell that your body contains and can potentially aid in curing diseases and or repair many essential things in your body such as a kidney or a lung. This sounds like an extremely favorable advantage to medical advancements but this subject does summon some intense debates on where the stem cells come from. Embryonic meaning that it comes from the embryo veers many people’s opinion to totally protest any use of embryonic stem cells. Opposing abortions and the use of embryonic stem cells go hand in hand. Many people are just not ready for the responsibility of having a child so they take matters into their own hands and many consider having an abortion. In the end everyone takes their own decision and they fit it to what they feel is best for their lives. Many people may see an abortion as killing an innocent life but people make their own decisions and no one can stop them. Abortions are a solution to unprepared individuals that can not handle the responsibility of having a child; why not use the cells from the procedure to save a life. Children are wonderful gifts but some people are just not ready to take up the responsibility of raising that gift so they can use that gift to help another needy life.
In the contemporary world of today, the issue of embryonic stem cell research is one of this controversial significant topic regarding which there is neither fair/moral agreement nor understandable, wide-ranging laws. As far as the ethical debate is concerned, it focuses on the verifiable piece of information that stem cell research consists of destroying the very early embryos of the human beings. The federal government has restricted the financial support for stem cell research to research that makes use of the stem cells obtained from a small amount of stem cell "lines" (Shapiro, 2006).
Human embryonic stem cells (hESCs) are pluripotent and are obtained from the inner mass of a 4-5 day old human blastocyst that consists of approximately 100 cells (“Stem cell research,” 2009).
First of all an understanding of what a stem cell is, where it comes from, and the significance of it's medical potential is essential. Stem cells are the "master cells" that form the human body or whatever other animal it is from. Stem cells can be extracted from adult tissues, bone marrow, umbilical cord blood ( ), and embryos in the blastocyst stage. Although scientists have found ways to manipulate the stem cells from adult sources into other types of cells, they claim that they are less capable of deriving the desired tissue and are not "biologically equivalent" ( ) to stem cells extracted from embryos.
Research into embryonic stem cells holds a lot of promise thanks to its recognized potential to treat a wide range of conditions such as physical trauma, degenerative conditions, and genetic diseases. However, human embryonic stem cell research is a controversial issue for many as the creation of embryonic stem cell line requires the destruction of a human embryo. This ethical dilemma has resulted in research being held back as the debate rages on rather it’s right to use embryos in research. Despite this, embryonic stem cell research should be allowed to continue because of its potential.
A brief introduction to stem cells; Stem cells are cells that are undifferentiated, or, simply put, a cell that has not yet been given a job, such as cells that create molecules. In recent years, scientists have discovered the potency that stem cells contain, due to their versatility. For example, stem cells could be studied and used to cure a man of liver disease, a child’s handicap, a woman’s breast cancer, etc…, etc…. One may now be asking themselves? “That’s great… then why are so many people against stem cell research? What could possibly be the drawback? “. You see, stem cells are acquired by human embryos, or, in Layman’s Terms, unborn fetuses. Take for
There have been an argument about whether embryonic stem cell research should be used or not. Embryonic stem cells are derived from the inner mass of a human embryo. They are pluripotent which means they can grow into most cells. They can also become all cell types of the body. Embryonic stem cells have the capability of spreading themselves indefinitely in an undifferentiated state.
“Over 100 million Americans suffer from diseases that eventually may be treated more effectively or even cured with embryonic stem cell therapy. Some researchers regard this as the greatest potential for the alleviation of human suffering since the advent of antibiotics” (White). However, not everybody agrees with this. While embryonic stem cells offer much hope for medical advancement because of their ability to grow into almost any kind of cell, the moral debate of the destruction of an embryo continues. Embryonic stem cells are taken directly from an embryo before the embryo 's cells begin to develop into their specific cells. While there may be promise of embryonic stem cells triggering medical advancements, the ongoing controversy continues to hinder research.
Contrarily, supporters of embryonic stem cell research argue that such research should be pursued because the resultant treatments could have significant medical potential. In addition, leftover embryos could be given with permission and
Embryonic stem cells are another type of stem cells. Embryonic stem cells are derived from the fetus. It is said that, using stem cells is compared to the destruction of an embryo to an abortion. Discarding the embryo is though that human life is ultimately de-valued. Anyone who supports the use of embryonic stem cells says that it is not equal because it is in the womb ( Mumaghan). Embryonic stem cells cannot be used directly because of the fact that they may cause tumors (Top ten stem cell
Stem cells and therapeutic cloning are currently being used for bone marrow transplants, retinal diseases, Lou Gehrig’s disease, heart disease, spinal cord injuries, and much more in a broad range of applications (Murnaghan). Stem cells can become any type of cell, making them serve many purposes. The first human embryo was cloned by a Massachusetts biotechnology company in 2001, and that’s when the idea of therapeutic cloning started
Stem cells and cloning have been around for a long time now. This process of this research has caused controversy and it has a lot of people wondering. The research on the development of stem cells and cloning has benefits scientifically, ethnically, and medically that are outgrowing today’s surrounding controversy. Adult and/or Embryonic stem cells are conjoined with animal cells to clone. In the process of cloning, genetic material is transferred between the human and the animal cell.