To begin, stem cells are undifferentiated biological cells that can differentiate into specialized cell types, and these cells can continuously divide in such a state. Scientists are trying to uncover how these cells differentiate into what makes up humans, hoping to be able to take stem cells and transform them into any cell that we need to treat diseases like Parkinson's and cancer. Stem cells essentially could pave the way to significant breakthroughs in curing diseases.
Recently, it has been uncovered that we can actually take adult cells and make them behave like embryonic stem cells. These so-called induced pluripotent stem (iPS) cells could make the need for embryos irrelevant. Traditionally, scientists took leftover embryos from abortion clinics and pulled human embryonic stem (hES) cells from the embryo with the patient's consent.
The method by which embryo's can utilized for obtaining stem cells is where the debate is most heated: it's a battle over abortion. Questions arise such as, "where does life begin" or "do embryos have rights?" To pro-life advocates, the idea of destroying an embryo is terrifying. However, the other side argues that these discarded embryos could help save millions of other lives at the cost of one.
It is an extremely difficult debate that the government attempts to regulate through federal funding given to biomedical research. The biggest obstacle though is how religion defines a life, and given that definition, do the scientific benefits to humans of taking away such a life outweigh any moral cost? It's hard for me to think of a day when we really come to any type of resolve over this issue since it is so sensitive.
Sources:
http://learn.genetics.utah.edu/content/stemcells/scissues/
http://content.time.com/time/nation/article/0,8599,167245,00.html
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Stem_cell
I agree with this blog post, with such a sensitive topic, a final conclusion seems out of reach. The idea that stem cells having the ability to save lives and cure diseases and wonderful and gives hope to many whom have these incurable conditions. But the fact that they are using aborted embryos for these stem cells makes me a little queazy to my stomach. I am personally religious and believe that at the moment of conception that those cells have a right to live, but do not have the power to make that decision, but at the same time if it has the capability to save other lives at the cost of its own I do not think the life was wasted. But then again I cannot speak for the mother or for the unborn child. Though, if there are options of taking adult cells and make them behave like embryonic cells, I believe that is a less touchy subject and can become more agreeable in science, morality and religion.
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