Embryonic stem cells are, as you would probably expect, stem cells that are derived from embryos and are different from gene therapy. This particular type of stem cell comes from a fertilised egg that is about 4-5 days old. These eggs are fertilised in the laboratory and not in a woman’s body – they are eggs donated for research purposes with the consent of the donor. After about 4 or 5 days the stem cells are taken from the fertilised egg and are cultured in the laboratory.
Embryonic stem cells are exciting the medical world due to the discovery that these cells have the ability to turn into absolutely any one of the 200 different cell types in the human body; for example, heart muscle cells, blood cells or nerve cells. The difficulty scientists face at the moment is being able to control the type of cell into which these stem cells will morph.
Stem cells in clinical research
Clinical research has shown that embryonic stem cells if not controlled vigilantly can morph spontaneously and this is of no use in treating medical problems. Scientists are developing ways in which they may be able to control the changing of these cells so that they can achieve specific cell types dependent on the illness the cells are intended to treat. It is the hope for the future that embryonic stem cells will be used in the treatment of Parkinson’s disease, vision and hearing loss, spinal cord injury, heart disease and Duchenne’s muscular dystrophy.
Embryonic stem cell practice is an area of stem cell therapy that is yet to show any sort of positive progress. Other forms of stem cell therapy such as the use of bone marrow stem cells, umbilical cord blood stem cells and even milk teeth stem cells have had multiple successes in treating disease. However, embryonic stem cells have not yet shared the same success and this aggravates the major ethical debate that surrounds the process to begin with.
Retrieving embryonic stem cells from a fertilised egg basically means destroying the 4-5 day old foetus and the ethical dilemma here is clear for all to see. Whilst the foetus is still very young, it is still a human life and many would argue that no human life should be sacrificed for the purpose of medical research without consent. The fact that as yet scientists have not had success with their research in this area only fuels the debate of whether it is morally correct to carry out such a practice.
The ethics of stem cell research
Whether or not embryonic stem cell research is ethically correct to be used is an argument upon which everybody will have an opinion. It is undeniable that there is something uncomfortable about killing an unborn foetus for the sake of medical research. On the other hand, diseases such as Parkinson’s disease, heart disease and muscular dystrophy are destroying multiple human lives every day and it is the hope of finding an answer for these people that gives this area of stem cell research a lifeline.
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