Stem cell breakthrough could make ethical debate moot
WASHINGTON (BP)--A bill that would drastically expand federal funding for embryonic stem cell research has been re-introduced in the Senate, but British and Canadian researchers announced a scientific breakthrough March 2 that could change the course of stem cell research and eventually make the ethical debate moot.
As detailed in the research journal Nature, the researchers found a safer way to reprogram ordinary human skin cells into embryonic-like stem cells. While a 2007 study by Japanese and American researchers did something very similar, the British and Canadian researchers did it without the use of a virus, which the '07 teams had used to complete the process. Researchers feared the use of viruses to turn the skin cells into the stem cells could cause cancer in patients.
Stem cells are the body's master cells that can develop into other cells and tissues, and they have the potential for leading to cures for diseases and other ailments.
It is a step towards the practical use of reprogrammed cells in medicine, perhaps even eliminating the need for human embryos as a source of stem cells," one of the researchers, Keisuke Kaji of the University of Edinburgh, told the Guardian newspaper. "This new method will advance the field of regenerative medicine and should help understand diseases and test new drugs."
With viruses no longer needed, the newer method has the potential to produce a limitless supply of safe embryonic-like stem cells -- which are known as induced pluripotent stem cells (iPS) -- but in a manner that is ethically acceptable to pro-lifers.
Prior to the announcement of the new method in 2007, the phrase "pluriopotent" -- which refers to a stem cell that can develop into all of the different cell types in the body -- was reserved only for embryonic stem cells. Adult stem cells, also referred to as non-embryonic stem cells, typically have been regarded as "multipotent," meaning they can form many, though not all, of the body's cell types........
The 2007 announcement by Japanese and American researchers was a breakthrough of its own but had problems because the teams had to use a virus to transport four crucial genes into the skin cell genome. The British and Canadian research found a way to place the four genes into the skin cell without the need of a virus.
"Stem cell research that requires destroying embryos is going the way of the Model T," Richard M. Doerflinger of the U.S. Conference of Catholic Bishops told The Washington Post. "No administration that values science and medical progress over politics will want to divert funds now toward that increasingly obsolete and needlessly divisive approach."
Other scientists hailed the breakthrough but told The Washington Post that research on embryonic stem cells should continue in order to see which method is more successful down the road.
http://www.bpnews.net/BPnews.asp?ID=29989
Down the road”?
What part of 74-0 don’t they comprehend, when it comes to adult/other stem cell research vs. embryonic stem cell research (in terms of the diseases cured or treated)?
The great fear about stem cell use is the fact that many diseases will be CURED once and for all. For example if the pancreas were recreated using stem cells, that means that entire industry that has formed out of treating diabetes will die off as no more money will be able to be made from it...no more test strips, glucometers, insulin, pills of all sorts etc etc. The same for heart issues, strokes, liver replacements, kidney replacements/dialysis. While ideally the ethical/Godly thing to do would be to use the stem cells to repair or replace these organs...the financial greed keeps it from happening. So these foolish arguments about pro lifers are mixed in to make time for the financial aspects of such treatment to be worked out and certain persons or institution make the most profit.
