Embryo Research

Target: What is embryo research?

Why is embryo research

controversial?

Starter

• What is a stem cell?

• YouTube - Introduction to Stem Cells

What is Embryo Research?

(Stem cell research)

• Embryo research is ‘the scientific study of an animal in the early stages of development’

• There are different types of embryo research, such as

• stem cell research,

• cloning

• Research on the foetal tissue.

• The issue of embryo research is a very controversial one. There are some very serious moral and ethical arguments against the issue of embryo research.

• Right – An embryonic stem cell

Item Pro Life Definition Pro Choice Definition

Start of pregnancy At conception When the embryo

imbeds itself in the

womb lining; about 12

days after conception

Start of human life At conception Various definitions:

e.g. at viability, or at

birth

Abortion The artificial

termination of human

life at any time from

conception to birth

Any termination of life

between implantation

and the start of the

third trimester

What are stem cells?

Stem cells are unspecialised cells that are thought to be

able to reproduce themselves indefinitely and, under the

right conditions, to develop into mature cells with

specialised functions, e.g., skin, pancreas, organs.

Hence, new cells can be grown from stem cells to replace

damaged cells and give medical relief.

Where are stem cells found?

They are found in embryos at very early stages of

development (see picture) and in some adult

organs, e.g., bone marrow and brain.

They may be hence taken from an adult, with difficulty,

but alternatively, they may be grown in and embryo,

then extracted, or ‘harvested’, for medical purposes.

What are the aims of stem cell research?

There are certain diseases that are caused by the death

or damage of certain cells which the body cannot

replace (e.g. burns, diabetes, Alzheimer’s and spinal

cord injuries).

At present the only hope for such patients is a

transplant but:

• transplants need organ donors

• tissue matches are not easy to achieve

• the procedure is complex and expensive

Stem cell research holds out the hope of treating

such diseases by generating new cells.

The pro-life position

• All pro-life conclusions are based on the foundational belief that a human life begins at the time fertilisation of the ovum. This means that the embryo is viewed as a human being with all of the rights of an adult. Experiments, which subject an ovum to any significant risk, are the ethical equivalent of the infamous medical experiments that were inflicted on unwilling and uniformed victims in Nazi death camps. Ends do not justify the means. Thus, no matter how helpful to mankind embryo is eventually killed or subjected to a significant risk.

• “That way lies the moral approach of a

totalitarian society, that thinks it can

use and abuse individual human beings

in accordance with some grand scheme

promising ‘the greatest good for the

greatest number.’…” [Richard

Doerflinger, National Conference of

Catholic Bishops. Response at a PBS

News hour forum (Ref. 6)].

The pro-choice position

• Pro-choice beliefs are based on the

assumption that a fertilized ovum is not a

human being; it is rather potential human

life. Pro-choice advocates differ in belief

concerning when life becomes human life:

Some argue that this happens:

When is life human?

• When the foetus resembles a human;

• The point of viability when the foetus can

live independently, or

• When the foetal brain develops to the

point where it experiences self-awareness,

or

• At birth, or at some other stage of

pregnancy.

Creating embryos and/or performing experiments on existing embryos

is justifiable if:

• The research has a

reasonable potential

of advancing medical

knowledge and

enhancing human life,

and

• If the embryos are

killed well before they

make the transition to

a human person

Actual Embryo Size

Against

• To clone Dolly the sheep, it took 278 attempts Dolly the sheep has suffered quite a few problems, scientists are finding it hard to define the age of her - do they work out her age from when she was born, or from the sheep that she was cloned from?

• She already has severe arthritis, something that wouldn’t usually occur until the sheep was much older, but is happening to her at the age of three. There are also concerns that if cloning human embryos is legalised, people try to create the ‘perfect’ child, that there would be a superior race. These lead to the fear that people such as Hitler could use them to their advantage; he wanted an Aryan race - blonde hair, blue eyes – with this technology, people who have the imperfections that make them who they are would be bred out.

For

• There is, on the other hand, a strong argument for cloning. Cloning could help lots of people who have debilitating illnesses. There was a case shown last year on the news about a young girl in America who had a hereditary disease that affected a certain part in her body, and the only cure was a donor off somebody. Her parents wanted her to get better, so they had IVF, but the scientists made sure that the embryo didn’t have the bad gene. When the baby was born, part of the baby’s tissue was taken and given to the girl, who after this got better. This shows us that sometimes embryo research can be used for good, and could be used to help people, who in other cases wouldn’t have a chance of life.

Activities

• Name the three different types of embryo research

• Use the table to fill in when life does/does not begin according to the peoples position.

• Explain the following terms:

• Conception

• Viable

• Implantation

• Trimester

• What is the main point of disagreement between Pro Life and Pro Choice groups?

• What were the complications involved in cloning Dolly?

• What are the dangers of cloning? Name three

• Explain a positive side of cloning? Name three