Nearly every disease known to man has the capacity to be treated or further understood through knowledge gained in stem cell research. While humans have come far in preventative measures and treatments for many types of disease, there are still many that take people from their families and friends every year. However controversial, stem cell research has greatly improved our understanding of the human body, and it is that research that will finally lead to the demise of the diseases many suffer from. Stem cell research has the potential to treat various neurodegenerative diseases, repair damaged parts of the body, and eradicate cancer. Parkinson’s Disease, a debilitating neurodegenerative disorder brought upon by neuronal cell death, displays
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Because they come from a very early embryo, they have the ability to differentiate into any part of the embryo, and thus any part of the human body (Gilbert et al. 16). This property gives embryonic stem cells the most diversity and the most potential as a source for “replacement” cells to combat disease. Scientists hope that they will lead to breakthroughs in the medical world. In one experiment, ES cells taken from mice and placed into a dish containing specific types of proteins known as growth factors divided into glial stem cells, cells that support the nervous system and help to maintain neurons in the brain (Gilbert et al. 151). The growth factors stimulated differentiation in the ES cells, meaning that they made cells develop into more specific types of cells with a unique function. Because these particular embryonic stem cells differentiated into glial cells, it is likely that this could be done on a larger scale to support healthy neuronal cells in brains affected by Parkinson’s. Similarly, when placed in the brains of mice, ES cells cultured in retinoic acid became neural stem cells that reestablished both glial and neural functions (151). These results have researchers hoping that stem cells which are cultured and then transplanted into the brains of patients would generate enough fully functioning cells to counter the effects of the damaged
Because they come from a very early embryo, they have the ability to differentiate into any part of the embryo, and thus any part of the human body (Gilbert et al. 16). This property gives embryonic stem cells the most diversity and the most potential as a source for “replacement” cells to combat disease. Scientists hope that they will lead to breakthroughs in the medical world. In one experiment, ES cells taken from mice and placed into a dish containing specific types of proteins known as growth factors divided into glial stem cells, cells that support the nervous system and help to maintain neurons in the brain (Gilbert et al. 151). The growth factors stimulated differentiation in the ES cells, meaning that they made cells develop into more specific types of cells with a unique function. Because these particular embryonic stem cells differentiated into glial cells, it is likely that this could be done on a larger scale to support healthy neuronal cells in brains affected by Parkinson’s. Similarly, when placed in the brains of mice, ES cells cultured in retinoic acid became neural stem cells that reestablished both glial and neural functions (151). These results have researchers hoping that stem cells which are cultured and then transplanted into the brains of patients would generate enough fully functioning cells to counter the effects of the damaged