More Good Stem Cell News
Researchers have found a potential new source of embryonic stems cells, eggs that have been coaxed into dividing as though fertilized:
A trick that persuades human eggs to divide as if they have been fertilised could provide a source of embryonic stem cells that sidesteps ethical objections to existing techniques. It could also be deployed to improve the success rate of IVF.
The tricked eggs divide for four or five days until they reach 50 to 100 cells – the blastocyst stage. These blastocysts should in theory yield stem cells, but because they are parthenogenetic – produced from the egg only – they cannot be viewed as a potential human life, says Karl Swann of the University of Wales College of Medicine in Cardiff, UK.
“This could eliminate one of the main sources of ethical controversy in this research,” says Bob Lanza, head of research at the cloning company Advanced Cell Technology in Worcester, Massachusetts.
This follows close on the heels of news from Korea that researchers have used stem cells derived from umbilical cord blood to enable a woman paralyzed from the waist down to walk. I have argued for some time now that the best way forward in the stem-cell debate is to find a win-win situation, something that provides the benefits but avoids the ethical snares. We appear to be getting closer to such a solution (or to a set of such solutions.)
(via Kurzweil AI)
Comments
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Posted by: Phil Bowermaster![[TypeKey Profile Page]](http://www.blog.speculist.com/nav-commenters.gif)
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December 3, 2004 08:25 AM
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Posted by: Phil Bowermaster![[TypeKey Profile Page]](http://www.blog.speculist.com/nav-commenters.gif)
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December 3, 2004 08:25 AM
I'd guess that these egg-only stem cells would be
especially useful to the woman from which the egg was extracted. If this was going to be our sole source of polypotent stem cells (which isn't likely) males, girls, and post-menopausal women would have to depend on a close match.
Perhaps a similar trick could be used to extract
polypotent stem cells from male gametes. If this were possible, it would be a great development because of the ease obtaining these gametes, and their vast number.
Also, I wonder if stem cells obtained from eggs could be used at all in males - no Y chromosome.
Of course we learned that women who have male babies have XY stem cells in their bodies, so maybe its not a problem."
Posted by: Stephen Gordon![[TypeKey Profile Page]](http://www.blog.speculist.com/nav-commenters.gif)
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December 3, 2004 08:55 AM
What if you took an egg, stripped out its DNA and put in a donor's DNA and then used this method to get the egg to multiply? You would then have stem cells that were an exact genetic match for the donor.
Would this method of therapuetic cloning be acceptable to pro-lifers? (Actually, I'm not entirely sure how or why it would be different from other techniques that might be used to create a human clone.)
Posted by: Phil Bowermaster![[TypeKey Profile Page]](http://www.blog.speculist.com/nav-commenters.gif)
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December 3, 2004 09:09 AM
Phil:
I'm not sure whether that would be acceptible or not. There's no new conception. But, we'd still be playing in God's toybox.
In his book "The Immortal Cell," Michael West spoke of experiments where he did exactly what you are talking about - and faced much criticism for it.
The dream solution would be to find a source of polypotent stem cells that:
1. Didn't involve the destruction of a potential human.
2. Doesn't involve the use of tissue that is painful to extract (harvesting human eggs is very painful).
3. Is readily available within the body of any given patient.
4. Is inexpensive
An inexpensive method for taken differentiated cells back to stem cell status would fit the bill nicely.
The doctor rubs a swab on the inside of the patient's mouth. The cells are run through a process and viola! The patient has his own stem cell line.
Well, we can dream.
Posted by: Stephen Gordon![[TypeKey Profile Page]](http://www.blog.speculist.com/nav-commenters.gif)
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December 3, 2004 02:31 PM