Zac Braun
Stem Cell Research Free Write In todays world of medicine, stem cell research is considered to be the most modern of all forthcoming forms of therapy, when in fact it is not. Stem cells were discovered in 1961 by Dr. James Till and Ernest McCulloch who both worked at the Ontario cancer institute at the time. The existence of stem cells and their ability to essentially transform into any other type of cell in the human body was an incredible first step in the long since developed and debated topic of stem cell therapy. Stem cells were immediately suggested as a cure all for diseases originally thought to be incurable and chronic illness; none more notorious than Cancer. Since their discovery, stem cells have made an appearance in every area of human life from politics to medical treatment with regular stops at religion and moral ethics in between. Prior to any controversy, however, the potential of stem cells still had to be unveiled. Stem cells, in a nutshell, are a remarkably blank form of human or any eukaryotic cell. They have the ability to take on any sequence of DNA and become the respective encrypted cell. These stem cells are found almost in every living tissue, the only difference between a stem cell and a regular functioning cell is their ability to renew themselves through cell division and that they can be induced to become any other form of tissue. In example, a stem cell found in the liver can divide and become a brain cell. Stem cells are found in two particular forms: embryonic stem cells and non –embryonic cells known as somatic or “adult” stem cells. The embryonic cells originate from human embryos that are created for reproductive purposes through a process known as in Vitro(Latin for in glass) fertilization. These cells are then grown in labs and can be transformed into any cell that is needed. The other form of stem cells, are “adult” cells which are found in living tissue. These cells are rare and much harder to find and harvest as they must be extracted from an already living and functioning organ whereas embryonic cells can be grown on their own. Stem cells have the potential to cure many common diseases that currently have no cures such as, diabetes, parkinson’s disease, arthritis, and there is some speculation that these stem cells may be the secret to cancer and birth defects. Today, stem cells have already begun to be used as a form of medicine known as stem cell transplant to cure hearing and eye sight problems. As was stated earlier, stem cell research has become one of today’s most controversial topics regarding to moral ethics behind the harvest of embryotic cells. Those in opposition of the research believe that these cells are part of new life and that they should not be grown in a lab in the first play, much less grown to be harvested as medical research. Religion also plays a roll in this issue, as many religions believe that human life should not be wasted. However, embryotic cells are not human life in the sense that they do not possess any conciseness or even a single organ that would create a form of life that is even similar to that of a human. If the embryotic cell were to be compared to that of a mouse there would be very little difference separating the two. This cannot be considered a human life, especially if it means the prevention of the incredible potential that stem cells present to the world of modern day medicine. As history shows, the human race will do anything it can to find a cure to illness that causes mass death or injury or even minute discomfort. Stem cells are the forefront of this research and have been found to possess the ability to cure things that were long thought to be an incurable curse.