Pros and cons of stem cell research
Pros and cons of stem cell research
The Pros
The excitement of research on stem cells is mainly due to medical benefits in the areas of regenerative medicine and therapeutic cloning. Stem cells have huge potential to find treatments and cures for a wide range of diseases including cancers, diabetes, various spinal cord injuries, Alzheimer's, MS, Huntington, Parkinson, etc..
There is endless potential for scientists to learn more about human growth and development of cells of the study of stem cells.
Using stem cells from adults, from blood, cord blood, skin and other tissues, known as ICSE, has been shown to be effective for the treatment of various diseases in animal models. Stem cells of umbilical cord-derived (obtained from cord blood) were also isolated and used for various experimental treatments. Another option is the use of uniparental stem cells. Although these cell lines have some disadvantages or shortcomings in relation to embryonic cell lines (they are shorter duration), there exists a vast potential if enough money is invested in more research, and they are not technically considered living individual pro-life advocates.
The Cons
Using embryonic stem cells for reasearch involves the destruction of blastocysts formed from laboratory fertilized human eggs. For those who believe that life begins at conception, the blastocyst is a human life and destroy it is unacceptable and immoral. This seems to be the only controversial issue standing in the way of stem cell research in North America.
Where it is
In the summer of 2006, President Bush was his ground on the issue of stem cell research and vetoed a bill passed by the Senate that would have expanded federal funding of research on embryonic stem cells. Currently, the U.S. federal funding can go to research on stem cells from existing (already destroyed) embryos. Similarly, in Canada, from 2002, the scientists can not create or clone embryos for research, but must use existing embryos discarded by couples. The UK allows the cloning of embryonic stem cells. He obviously wasn't thinking about both the Pros and cons of stem cell research and was only focusing on the cons.
Using stem cell lines from other non-embryonic sources has received more attention in recent years and has already been demonstrated as an effective option for treating some diseases. For example, adult stem cells can be used to replace blood cells forming cells killed during chemotherapy in patients with bone marrow transplantation. Biotech companies such as ACT and Revivicor are researching techniques of cellular reprogramming adult cells, the use of amniotic fluid, or techniques for extracting stem cells that do not harm the embryo, which also provide viable alternatives for obtaining stem cell lines.
By necessity, research on these alternatives is catching up with research on embryonic stem cells and, with adequate funding, other solutions could be found that are acceptable to everyone.
On March 9, 2009, President Obama overturned Bush's decision, allowing the U.S. to get Federal funding for research on embryonic stem cells. However, the provision applies as normal political NIH data sharing must be followed. Despite progress in other areas of research on stem cells, using pluripotent cells from other sources, many American scientists are lobbying the government to enable them to participate and compete with the Europeans. However, many people are still firmly opposed.
The above are the Pros and cons of stem cell research