Stem cell controversy

behind the HeLa cells, Henrietta Lacks, holds relevant today and forever. The unethical acts of the scientific and public health community lead to consequences that create a lasting impact on affected communities. Henrietta’s story and other immoral research practices have left a stain on the way disadvantaged groups view medicine, doctors, and public health. This stain will lead to a decrease in the efficacy of their healthcare and in turn hinder them even further. Henrietta’s cells currently…

all stem cell research and treatments. In fact, the belief that stem cells come from aborted fetuses is a misconception. I will clarify this misconception for you. I will begin by explaining the basic stem cell biology. There are two big categorized cells, stem cells and specialized cells. Our bodies contain many types of specialized cells, and each type of specialized cells functions for different purposes. Examples include eye cells, heart cells, and hair cells. They all develop from stem…

from other parts of the body are not suitable for the coronary artery bypass, then a replacement blood vessel must be used. My goal is to make a blood vessel replacement that is durable, strong, flexible, comfortable, interacts well with surrounding cells and tissues, all while being as inexpensive as possible. I believe the best way to achieve this goal is to create my own novel design. I can study existing technologies to see where prior technologies failed or suffered and use my ideas to fix…

Muscular dystrophy is an ailment that can have a very huge toll on the body. It is a group of congenital muscle diseases, in which muscle fibers are strangely vulnerable to mutilation and become increasingly weaker. In the late phases of the disease, fat and connective tissue often swap muscle fibers. This disease usually appears to be because of a hereditary shortage of the muscle protein, dystrophin. This group of ailments includes Duchenne's muscular dystrophy, Becker's muscular dystrophy,…

With a fascination of the brain since middle school, I have gradually developed an interest in neurology, especially concerning the study of brain tumors. It is fascinating to know that one tumor in the brain can affect the entire body, which is why I wish to embrace the profession of a neurologist in the future. As a dedicated student, I am always centered around the “why” of any situation whether it be in science, history, or math. I dig deeper and focus on the roots of the problem being faced…

Stem cells show the potential to be able to heal many types of injuries and degenerative diseases. Though stem cell therapies are questionable in their effectiveness, New York Yankees pitcher Bartolo Colon opted to have a treatment done in the Dominican Republic after having persistent arm troubles that prevented him from completing a single full season from 2005 to 2012, and even forced him to sit out for the full season in 2010. Steve Sternberg, a regular correspondent of USA Today, reported…

Pediatric brain tumors have always been a great interest of mine. I find it devastating hearing the news of a child with a brain tumor because often times they are fatal. The complexity of brain tumors and the impact they play on the functions of one’s body are life changing. For this reason, I was interested in researching a charity that raises money to find a cure or prevention for brain tumors in children. The two organizations I chose to research were American Brain Tumor Association,…

Embryonic Stem Cells For Arthritis: Pros and Cons By Nathan Wei Oct 4, 2012 When people think of stem cells, the type they have in their minds is the embryonic stem cell (ESC). This article explains what ESCs are and what the current state of the research is. ESCs are obviously derived from embryos and are pluripotential, meaning they can easily differentiate into any body tissue. The history of ESC research is interesting. The first experiments that described self-renewing cells were done…

Stem Cell Research While doing the research for this paper I found many reasons to be for and against this type of medical research. The main reason I am for this is it allows for the continuous research and development of new therapies and possible cures for the many diseases the plague our country today and in the future. This topic has been highly debated for many years and is still one of the most talked about topics in medical research today. It ask the ethical question should we allow…

A cell is a very basic structural and functional unit of life. A human body is considered multicellular because the body consists of trillions of cells. Cells have many different functions throughout the body, and they ‘stem’ from simpler cells that do not yet have a specific function. These cells are known as stem cells. This basically means these cells do not have a specific job in body yet, but have the potential to become any cell in the body. Stem Cell research has been around for decades,…