Brief introduction of Stem Cell and its ethical limitations

avatar
A stem cell is a single cell that can replicate itself or differentiate into many cell types. Our body is made up of around 200 different types of cells. All these type of cells develop from pool of stem cells in the early embryo. As the embryo develops, various stem cells develop the specialized cells that perform the specific functions of our body just like blood, skin, muscle and nerve cells.

image.png
image source

The scientists believe that certain animals have ability to regenerate their missing parts of their body. This ability is shared with animals like starfish. Although, the humans can’t replace the whole missing finger or arm, our bodies constantly regenerate skin, blood and other tissues.

This ability of regeneration was first revealed during experiments of bone marrow in 1950s and it was found that stem cells exist in our bodies which have ability to regenerate. This discovery gave hope in medical field. It became possible for physicians to regenerate the damaged tissue with the new healthy cells.

The scientists believe that the stem cell research can achieve major medical breakthroughs. They are trying to create therapies that could replace damaged cells with new tissues that are grown from stem cells. This could be hopeful for patients that are suffering from cancer, diabetics, spinal cord injuries, cardiovascular diseases and other major disorders. This research can also be helpful in discovering new methods of drug discovery and understanding the basic biology of human body.

image.png
image source

There are two different types of stem cell which have both advantages and limitations i.e. Embryonic stem cells, which are derived from early stage of human development and adult stem cells which are found in certain issues of fully developed humans. These adult cells are limited to only specialized cells. The scientists have recently found the stem cells in umbilical card and placenta that can develop various types of blood cells.

The scientists normally use the animals for medical research on stem cells to do research on organisms and diseases. It is a common practice of implanting the human cells into mice for a long time to test the safety and effectiveness of new drugs. They use animals to make sure that the stem cells are able to incorporate into tissues and they don’t cause any harmful consequences into rest of body. If these methods prove successful in mice, they apply this technology on human body.

However there are some ethical limitations on wide range of stem cell research activities. In 2005, the National Academies published the guidelines for scientists to do research on human embryonic stem cells to encourage ethical sensitive conduct in their research. However many people consider it insufficient as these have no legal bindings.

These guidelines require that all egg and sperm donations should follow suitable informed consent and confidentiality procedures. These guidelines can be found in detail at www.nationalacademies.org/stemcells. With the advancement of science, these ethical objections and observations are also changing.

Thank you for reading! Stay Safe!👋😌

References:

  1. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Child_labour
  2. https://www.mayoclinic.org/tests-procedures/bone-marrow-transplant/in-depth/stem-cells/art-20048117


0
0
0.000
0 comments