HUMAN ABORTED EMBRYOS

Advantages and Disadvantages of the use of Human Aborted Embryos for Stem Cell Research

Advantages and Disadvantages of the use of Human Aborted Embryos for Stem Cell Research

Introduction

Stem cells are undifferentiated cells capable of reproducing a part of in order to maintain a permanent reservoir of their species, and secondly, to give rise to differentiated cells in the sample including the cells of the hematopoietic, hepatocytes or muscle cells. A fundamental property is the character of clonogenic cells; one cell is capable of renewing the entire population.

Advantages

These cells are:

Flexible: They have the potential to form any cell in the body.

Immortals: A cell line can potentially provide an infinite number of cells with carefully defined characteristics.

Easily obtainable, human embryos can be obtained from fertility clinics.

Disadvantages:

They can:

Be difficult to control: The method to induce cell type to treat a particular disease should be defined and optimized.

Conflict with the patient's immune system: It is possible that the transplanted cells differ in their immune profile of the vessel and are then rejected.

To be ethically controversial: People who believe life begins at conception say that carrying out research on human embryos is unethical, even when the donor's consent.

The use of Human Aborted Embryos for Stem Cell Research

More commonly known as embryonic stem (ES), they are from the inside of the blastocyst. ES cells are derived from cells of the inner cell mass (ICM) of a blastocyst. Currently, 15 lines derived from human embryos are available. There is another variety of pluripotent cells, primordial germ cells (EG cells). They are taken from aborted fetuses to eight weeks; they belong to the cell line that will form the eggs and sperm from which their capacity of differentiation are lower than those of ES cells. Also, there are EC cells (Embryonic carcinoma cells). ...