The Heated Debate Concerning Stem Cell Research Essay example

Stem Cell Research Few recent scientific issues have stimulated so much media attention, public debate and government involvement as that of stem cell research. Stem cells offer people hope by promising to greatly extend the number and range of patients who could benefit from transplants, and to provide novel therapies to treat debilitating diseases such as diabetes, Parkinson?s, Huntington?s, heart disease and stroke, as well as accidental damage such as spinal cord injury. So why would anyone object to research in this area? The problem is simply that a particular type of stem cell, which potentially could provide many cell types for a wide range of therapeutic uses, is obtained from the very early embryo. To make matters even more†¦show more content†¦This is particularly true within the nervous system, but also in other tissues where turnover is low, such as the pancreas. How can we harness stem cells to cure diseases? We have become very used to the idea of organ transplants in medicine, to treat a wide range of problems from cataracts to kidney or heart disease. However, we are also all aware of the frequency with which they fail, often through immune rejection, and there is also a serious shortage of organ donors. Both problems could be solved if tissue could be taken from one part of the body to repair another part of the same individual. There are relatively few cases where this is done at present, e.g. using valves from leg veins to repair heart valves. Rather than using whole donor organs or tissues, an alternative would be to use the stem cells able to form those tissues. In fact this is already done with bone marrow transplants, where the stem cells in the graft can regenerate all the different types of cell in the blood. Other types of stem cell could be used in a similar way. For example, the correct stem cell type might allow specific cell types to be replaced in the nervous system, where it is impossible to transplant whole structures. The idea is to identify and remove the stem cells from a particular tissue, multiply them outside of the body and then use them to replace damaged tissue. This isShow MoreRelatedThe Heated Debate Concerning Stem Cell Research Essay1043 Words   |  5 PagesStates, research has become a viable tool for sustaining and prolonging human life. As research evolves, it brings along with it much controversy, especially where stem cell research is involved. Stem cell research can bring new insight to t oday’s medical field. This may be the way of finding solutions concerning many health injuries and diseases which would diversely be thought of as implausible. Thoughts can be influenced by Deborah White, in Pros Cons of Embryonic Stem Cell Research, â€Å"EmbryonicRead MoreThe Heated Debate Concerning Stem Cell Research Essay787 Words   |  4 PagesThe Controversy Over Stem Cell Research In a lab at the University of California, a scientist carefully isolates several cells and locates them to a petry dish. A few days later, he returns to find the cells pulsating like a human heart (Gorman 58). This account has actually been occurring at several scientific labs across the nation. These cells, known as stem cells, produce nearly all the other cells and tissues found in the human body (Sobel Sep 4, 22). Intensive research has found that whenRead MoreThe Heated Debate Concerning Stem Cell Research Essay2353 Words   |  10 PagesThe Moral Debate over Stem Cell Research President George W. Bush looked stern and confident as he addressed the American people on August 9th, 2001. It was an historic day for the 43rd president, as he explained the debate surrounding embryonic stem cell research, including its possible benefits for science but also its problems surrounding morals and ethics. â€Å"The issue is debated within the church, with people of different faiths, even many of the same faith coming to different conclusionsRead MoreEssay on The Heated Debate Concerning Stem Cell Research2589 Words   |  11 Pagesof stem cells can become a very controversial subject in the scientific research world. Stem cells serve as an internal repair system to restore other cells as long as the person or animal is still alive. By doing so, many fatal and untreatable diseases such as leukemia and Parkinson’s would be able to be treated and cured. The origination of stem cells is what stirs up great controversy across the nation and among the world. Until recently, scientists primarily worked with two kinds of stem cells:Read MoreThe Heated Debate Concerning Stem Cell Research Essay878 Words   |  4 PagesStem Cell Research   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  The topic of stem cell research does not affect me so much at the moment. It might in the future, but for now it does not. I do believe that stem cell research should be used for cloning organs that will be used for organ transplants. I do not however think that parents should place the doctors on pedestals just because these â€Å"mad scientists† supposedly have the power of God.   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  The topic of heated debate does intrigue me, but not to the point as to where I would makeRead MoreEssay on The Heated Debate Concerning Stem Cell Research1025 Words   |  5 PagesStem Cell Research Should stem cell research be allowed? Stem cell research has been a major biological breakthrough in recent years. It has great potential to help people and ease suffering. But there is also a moral question raised about stem cell research, and that comes from the source of stem cells. Ever since Stem Cell research started, there has been much debate over whether or not it should be allowed. Some people are completely against stem cell research becauseRead MoreThe Heated Debate Concerning Stem Cell Research Essay1477 Words   |  6 PagesStem Cells Few scientific issues in recent years have managed to draw as much attention, both scientific and otherwise, than stem cell research. I was first introduced to the term ‘stem cells’ when I was in high school, and since then, I have had a keen interest in the direction science is taking them. When considering medical research as a whole, stem cells appear to have the makings of a 21st century medical revolution a la discovery of antibiotics . The open-ended nature of stems cells hasRead More The Heated Debate Concerning Stem Cell Research Essay3495 Words   |  14 PagesEmbryonic Stem Cell Research Stem cells are the newest hot topic in biological research. Very few other ongoing areas of research have been the focus of numerous articles, Presidential and Congressional scrutiny, and numerous ethical debates played out in the national media. This ongoing focus on stem cells is due in part to their amazing potential and in part to the controversial nature of one type of stem cell—the embryonic stem cell. The key question that is being dealt with is the issueRead MoreThe Heated Debate Concerning Stem Cell Research Essay2717 Words   |  11 PagesStem Cell Research - Embryonic Stem Cell Use Controversial Despite the strong consensus in America against creating embryos to destroy them, those actually involved in embryo research no longer see any serious ethical problem in it. Now the American Society for Reproductive Medicine (ASRM) says that ASRMs ethical guidelines permit the creation of human embryos to destroy them. Some even argue that such research is morally superior to the use of spare embryos, because the egg and sperm donorsRead MoreThe Heated Debate Concerning Stem Cell Research Essay2103 Words   |  9 Pages(Engebreston, 2006). In today’s world medical research and technology is rapidly changing and there are increasing ethical conflicts between science and religion particularly with the recent harvest and research of embryonic stem cells. The use of embryonic stem cells has been described by â€Å"Chris McDonald, stem cell research centre, 2008† as one of the most significant breakthroughs of this century in biomedicine. The focus question within this rese arch assignment is, it is right to regard an embryo