This article provided a very good start for my research on Stem Cells. In addition to providing a good look into what scientists do to stem cells, it brought in two opposing viewpoints and explained both platforms well.
The article was written five years ago, in August, when Bush was deciding whether to fund Stem Cell Research for the first time. Back in 2001, Stem Cell research was still a relativley obscure branch of medical research, when most of the people who opposed it know only that it took human embryos and used them for research, which was bad. Bush, to placate the Religious Right with this viewpoint, had promised not to fund it.
The article continued to say that Bush did not stick to his promise, to the letter. Instead, he formed a compromise with scientists, as he did not want to impede medical progress, that he will not fund the extraction of Stem Cells from embryos, but he would allow research to continue on already extracted stem cells, of which the scientists said that there are enough to use, but not as many as they would like.
The article provided me with this information on what the process of Stem Cell Research is: "These are cells extracted from embryos created for fertility treatments but not used to produce children. The extracted stem cells potentially can be made to grow into any cell in the human body, making them an extraordinary resource in the fight against Alzheimer's, Parkinson's, diabetes and other diseases." As this was what was known five years ago, I thought that this article would be a good starting point to see the progress of Stem Cell Research from then to now.
Questions:
- How has the process and knowledge of Stem Cell Research changed from 2001 to today?
- Are there still enough embryos to continue research?
- How has Stem Cell research contributed to the cure of such serious diseases as diebetes and Alzheimer's?
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