What is Stem Cell Research? Is is bad?

Question

I've heard many people talking about this, and i still am curious.

Answer 1

Stem cells form during embryo development. They have the potential to take on the roles of any type of cell. Using stem cells  medically would likely require essentially killing a human embryo.

Answer 2

basically stem cell research means using cells to rebuild or modify other cells. basicall if we research stem cells, in the future, if someone needs an organ they dont have to die. there is controversy because some people believe its wrong because of their religion.

Answer 3

The type you hear about is the type of stem cells drawn from Fetal Tissue...

What most people don't understand is that a LOT of these types of cells can come from ovums that couples made while undergoing invetro fertilization...

Say only 1 in 10 implanted ovum grows into a baby... It can take 3 tries to get a successful pregnancy so that means that they could have extracted and fertilized 40 ovum...

After the couple has a baby, they usually keep the other EXTRA ovum for a few years and then either tell the storage facility to DISPOSE OF THEM, meaning burn them as biohaserdous materials, or don't get the nerve to say "Throw them out" and so they just stop answering the letters of the facility...

You don't need to MAKE fertilized ovum to make stem cells... If these people DONATED their EXTRA and DISPOSABLE ovum to research, we wouldn't have any more problems...

If you have to choose between torching them in an incinerator or helping people design a cure for cancer or spinal cord injuries... h**l... It isn't even a choice...

You have to be RETARDED to just have these things wasted...

THAT is the reason so many people freak out about stem cells...

If you think that a fertilized egg = a baby then you have a problem with it... Though it doesn't seem to effect their appetite for chicken eggs...

Answer 4

You really should research it on your own. Its easy to type it into google. I did it last year for an essay and its a topic you shouldn't take others opinions on. You really need to come up with your own.

But I am a bit religious and yet I do believe its a great thing. To me, a human shouldn't be considered an actual person till its able to live outside the mother. Sooo many diseases that literally make a person waste away could be cured if proper research was allowed to be conducted and implemented. Using something that has the potential to become, and yet not is, a person so many lives could be impoved and saved.

And what others on here to seem to be missleading you on is that actual FETAL stem cells are rarely used. Athough they can be of course, the majority of researched stem cells are EMBRYONIC stem cells that have the best chance of curing others. At this stage an embryo does not resemble a human yet. It is no different from a bird or fish or dog at this stage.

Look it up and come up with your own opinion though. Don't take anyones word for it.

Answer 5

I can't give you the technical answer.  Suffice it to say that the research involves cells that can regenerate.  It is believed that if we learn to control that growth, we can cure cancer, rebuild nerves and let paralyzed people regain the functions of their limbs.

The controversy enters when people argue over where the cells for experimentation should be obtained.  There are cells taken from adults and then those from fetuses.  The argument against fetal cell research is that women may get pregnant just to sell the fetus, abortions will increase, etc.

I haven't seen any actual statistics, just hear people argue, that there hasn't been one successful experiment with fetal cells, but there have been numerous successes with adult cells.

Answer 6

When an ovum is fertilized, it starts as a single cell.  Within that single cell is the DNA from both parents.  It is unique, and will normally grow and develop into a unique human being, with nothing else added but nutrition, unless something goes wrong during pregnancy.  Some people, not only some Christians, believe that this is a human being and deserves the protection of the law.

Within hours, the cell divides in two, then four, then eight, and so on.  At about the eight-cell stage, the cells are stem cells and develop further in many different ways.  The ability to develop in different ways, becoming skin cells, or whole organs, or healthy blood cells, for example, gives scientists hope that they can someday be used to cure sick people.  In order to do that, they would have to go through several years of research, learning what the possibilities are and how to control them.

Doing the research on these cells would prevent the "blastocyst" (early-stage embryo) from developing, in effect killing the organism.  There are other sources for stem cells that do not require killing embryos, but at this point most scientists do not think they show the promise that embryonal stem cells do.  Those who believe that the embryo is a form of human life, and especially those who believe that a human being receives a soul at the time of conception, see this research as homicide, if not murder.  The fact that some embryos are discarded is irrelevant to them; it is just another form of homicide and both are wrong.  These people are in favor of doing research with other forms of stem cells, at least to see if cures are possible, and even if the research takes 10 years instead of 8.

Other people worry that until we have a better definition of when human life starts (and ends), further killing of embryos could lead to questionable decisions about how to treat fetuses, babies, disabled people, and old people, all of whom don't have much to say in the political process.  People who have read about n**i policies in Germany know how things can get out of hand.

Answer 7

Stem cells are cells that can be geneticly alterted to become any human cells (lung cells, brain cells, skin cells etc).These could be very useful in the future for helping people with injurys or fatal heath conditions.

The problem comes from there source. the can be harvested from a baby's umbilical cord, or much more contraversal from embryos (especially grown for the purpose).Christian groups have a major problem with this. They belive that human life should not be made for this purpose.

I suggest wikipedia or suchlike for you to get more information before making your mind up about stem research.

Answer 8

Stem cell research  offers the best hope for people with Alzheimer's, Parkinson's  diabetes, spinal cord injury's, and many others.  My wife is an R.N. and she told me that when  a baby is aborted, they throw the fetus in a bio-hazard trash, never mind that the fetus is still moving, and they don't even try to keep it warm or anything.  That is wrong and we all know it.  Why not use these poor  humans, if they aren't going to be allowed to live anyway be contributed to science.