Stem Cells and its Debate on Ethical Issues

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Stem cells research has been a very disputed topic among the US. There has been ethical issues concerning stem cell research and has caused friction in its track to its full potential. These ethical issues include the concern of moral status of embryos, in which stem cells are made of and the doomed embryos ands. Religion plays a huge role in the stem cell debate concerning issues with their religion. Several scientist that have been researching stem cells have agreed that stem cells have great potential to cure several harmful diseases like diabetes as well as cancer.Stem cell research should have an increase in its budget and less restricted to further help the research of potential cures to diseases like diabetes. Stem cells are distinguished from other cell types by two important characteristics. First of all, they are unspecialized cells capable of renewing themselves through cell division. Second, under certain physiological or experimental conditions, they can be specialized to become tissue- or organ-specific cells with special functions. In some organs, stem cells regularly divide to repair and replace worn out or damaged tissues. In other organs, such as the heart, stem cells only divide under special conditions. Scientists discovered ways to get embryonic stem cells from early mouse embryos in 1981. The in depth study of the biology of mouse stem cells led to the discovery, in 1998, of a method to get stem cells from human embryos and grow the cells in a laboratory. These cells are named human embryonic stem cells. The human embryonic stem cells used in these studies were created for research purposes and has from then on led to controversial issues surrounding them. Stem cells may have the potential to be grown to b... ... middle of paper ... ...in full swing. N.p., 14 Nov. 2013 Green, R., 2002, “Benefiting from ‘Evil’; An Incipient Moral Problem in Human Stem Cell Research,” Bioethics 16(6): 544–556. Knowles, Lori P. “Religion and Stem Cell Research” Stem Cell Network, For the Public, Ethics and Policy, Spring 2010. Mackenzie, Debra. “Stem Cells in Court.” New Scientist 215.2873(2012): 5.General Science Collection "Obama Overturns Bush Policy on Stem Cells." CNN. Cable News Network, 9 Mar. 2009. Web. 11 Mar. 2014. "Stem Cell Research Around the World." Pew Research Centers Religion Public Life Project RSS. N.p., 17 July 2008. Web. 12 Mar. 2014. “The Stem Cell Debate: is it over?” The Stem Cell Debate: Is it over. N.p, n.d. Vestal, Christine. "Stem Cell Research at the Crossroads of Religion and Politics." Pew Research Centers Religion Public Life Project RSS. N.p., 17 July 2008. Web. 10 Mar. 2014.

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