Stem cell reserch Essay Example For Students

Stem cell reserch Essay #65279; Science is moving at such a rapid speed these days, between cloning, gene therapy, miracle drugs, exotic therapies, etc. One of the most significant breakthroughs came in November 1998, when two separate researchers successfully isolated stem cells from human embryos and aborted fetuses. Stem cells are primordial cells of a human organism, which are capable of becoming all or most of the 210 different kinds of tissues in the human body. Stem cells have been defined as not fully differentiated yet to be any particular type of tissue or cell. They range from totipotent, i. e. ( the early stages of the human embryo up to about 4 days after conception.) To pluripotent I.e. (a bit older and therefore only capable of being some cells or tissues in the body.) As in the 5-7 day blastocyst stage of the early embryo, with decreasing capacity in later stages of fetal development and in human beings. The impassioned hopes are that these stem cells can be used to great advantages. The cautious fears are that innocent and vulnerable human beings are destroyed, and needlessly so, in the process. The debates are raging. Many people are confused about what stem cell research really is, and wonder why all the fuss. There are several well documented and well- articulated sources of information available on this issue already, so the following is a brief overview of some of the major scientific, ethical, pros and cons. For centuries humanity has been plagued with numerous diseases, such as the black plague, Cancer, AIDS, and other diseases. These horrific, dreaded diseases have killed millions of people due to doctors or scientists not having a cure, but thanks to a scientific and medical breakthrough these diseases can and will be a thing of the past. With this new research scientists are hoping to gain important scientific knowledge about embryonic development and its application to related fields; curing debilitating diseases, e.g., Parkinsons, Alzheimers, diabetes, stroke, spinal cord injuries, bone diseases, etc.; and screening drugs for pharmaceutical companies, instead of having to rely on animal models. In order to continue with these medical and scientific breakthroughs you have to accept the right-to-life argument in its most extreme form. Im talking about newly formed embryos. These are not fetuses with tiny little waving hands and feet. These are microscopic groupings of a few differentiated cells. There is nothing human about them, except potential, and only if you choose to believe it, a soul. However, Bush is blocking, stem cell research would not actually take the life of a single embryo. Researchers would only use embryos that are being discarded anyway. 1 I understand that some people and pro lifers say that stem cell research is murder. But I strongly fell that it is ethically acceptable even morally required to destroy a few human beings in order to possibly benefit millions of patients. Besides, these cells do not cause the same immuno-incompatibility problems after transplantation as do adult stem cells from different patients. Further, these early cells from human embryos and fetuses are MORE totipotent and pluripotent than adult stem cells, and therefore they can be coaxed to become more different kinds of tissues, and can last longer in culture awaiting use. Besides, these fetuses and left- over IVF-produced human embryos are going to die anyway, so we might as well get some good use out of them.1 Researchers believe that stem cells can mimic the actions and activities of nearly every other cell in the body. Eventually, scientists hope to use them to repair damaged hearts after heart attacks, regenerate livers devastated by cirrhosis or viral disease, reconstruct damaged joints, or seed the brain with fresh neurons to reverse the effects of Parkinsons and Lou Gehrigs disease, according to the November issue of Technology Review, a research magazine published by the Massachusetts Institute of Technology, or MIT. 2 Now for every good there is a bad, and with all this technology there has to be a negative side, after all everything with medication and medical research has its side effects, and thousands of people in the world feel that stem cell research is morally and ethically wrong regardless of what stem cell research promises, as well as all the side effects that come along with stem cell research. Here are just some of the side effects or things that are wrong or unethical. First, one minor complication is that use of human embryonic stem cells requires lifelong use of drugs to .