Wait a second!
More handpicked essays just for you.
More handpicked essays just for you.
Impact of stem cells in the medical field
The importance of stem cells
The importance of stem cells
Don’t take our word for it - see why 10 million students trust us with their essay needs.
Recommended: Impact of stem cells in the medical field
In general, a cell can be defined as a stem cell if two basic criteria are met. First, stem cell is capable of self renewal for indefinite period throughout life while maintaining undifferentiated state, i.e., the cell can divide and produce two identical daughter cells and thereby maintains the stem cell pool. Second, stem cell possesses capacity for differentiate into specialised and functional progeny under the right conditions, or given the right signals. It may divide asymmetrically to yield an identical cell and a daughter cell that acquires a particular cell type’s properties, such as morphology, phenotype and functional physiology that classified it belongs to a particular tissue (Burns and Zon 2002; Preston et al. 2003). Stem cell also can be classified into a hierarchy according to its differentiation potential (Figure 1). On the very top of the hierarchy is the totipotent stem cell. This cell is able to give rise to all kind of cell which constitute the embryonic and extra-embryonic tissues and then contribute to the entire organism, (e.g. the fertilized egg or zygote)...
However, this is just a brief mention of the potential applications of stem cell research, which will be discussed at a later point in this essay. Stem cells are categorized into three genres based upon their potential developmental capability, total to limited. (NIH PRIMER http://www.nih.gov/news/stemcell/primer.htm) Totipotent stem cells are stem cells whose potential is total, thus totipotent. Totipotent stem cells are derived from embryonic tissue and fertilized ovarian eggs.
This report does a fairly comprehensive job on educating the public to the definition of stem cells, describing them as “a diverse group of remarkable multipotent cells that are relatively undifferentiated and unspecialized cells of the body.” Stem cells have the capacity for unlimited self-renewal and the possibility to produce differentiated descendant cell types. The main in...
As technology stem cell research intensifies, so does the controversy about whether such scientific progress is moral. In the past millennium to today the present stem cell research has become a controversial topic across the world. Stem cells are unspecialized cells that have unique regenerative abilities, allowing them to divide into specialized cell types. Understanding why these processes occur is essential to curing disease. Critics of stem cell research argue that the extraction of embryonic stem cells involves destroying an early embryo, equating the act of killing a human. Although stem cell research is a highly controversial topic, it is compulsory to continue stem cell research within ethical boundaries for the benefit of mankind.
Embryonic stem cells are derived from a four or five day old human embryo that is in the blastocyst phase of development (see figure 5). The embryo’s that are used for stem cell research, are extra’s that have been created in IVF clinics (in vitro fertilization), that are no longer needed. Embryonic stem cells are totipotent (cells with the potential to develop into any cells in the body). Scientists have discovered an alternative to embryonic stem cells, these cells ...
Stem cells are mother cells that have potential to develop into a new different cell in the body. It can self-renew or multiply while developing into other types of cells, for example they can become cells of the blood, heart, bones, skin, muscles and brain. Stem cells were discovered in human cord blood in 1978, and in 1998, Thompson, from the University of Wisconsin, isolated cells from the inner cell mass of early embryos (early stage of an animal or person before it is born) and developed t...
The importance of embryonic stem cells rests in their lack of specialization. These basic cells are present in the earliest stages of developing embryos and are able to develop into virtually any type of cell and tissue in the body. Being self-renewing, they offer a potentially limitless source of cells and tissue. (Tucker)
What can one day cure diseases such as cancer? Stem cells. Stem cells are the future in medical technology. In this paper I will discuss what stem cells are, the history behind stem cell research, how stem cells might help treat diseases, and what diseases stem cells could potentially treat. I will also discuss the positives of stem cell research, the negatives of stem cell research, and what the hope for stem cell research is.
There are many different types of stem cells that are being looked at for research. These include embryonic stem cells, adult stem cells, and induced pluripotent cells. Embryonic stem cells are cells that have the potential to produce many different cells in the body. They are cells that are tak...
Stem cell research is on the forefront of regenerative medicine and biological science. It is the study of certain cells in the inner mass of the embryo that are produced a few days after the embryo forms during the blastocyst stage. They are the most primitive of all human cells. They are undifferentiated cells, which mean the cells are not designated to be any special type of cell, such as a nerve, muscle, or skin cell. The cell's specialization is later influenced by the molecules, which are usually proteins that surround the cell (Marshak 220-223). The proteins are typically produced by the mother, but under certain laboratory conditions, distinctive proteins can be introduced and a definite, mature cell type is produced. The cells that are produced could be implanted into a subject to replace worn out cells, or cells that have been destroyed due to disease or injury.
...oll(2010), around 33% of U.S. voters believe that taxpayers’ money should be spent on embryonic stem cell research and more than 50% of the voters disagree that taxpayers’ money should go the research(Roe, 2010). Hence, it is believed that government should not fund the stem cell research.
A stem cell is a special type of ‘starter’ cell that can grow into any kind of adult tissue. It is basically a ‘blank’ cell that can adapt and become a differentiate cell type like a nerve cell, a bone cell, or a skin cell. They are a foundation for every cell, tissue and organ in your body.
Research on stem cells is advancing knowledge about how an organism develops from a single cell and how healthy cells replace damaged cells in adult organisms. This promising area of science is also leading scientists to investigate the possibility of cell-based therapies to treat disease, which is often referred to as regenerative or reparative medicine. There is genuine scientific excitement over the concept of using the body's own cellular building blocks to regenerate damaged or ageing organs. Stem cells are one of the most fascinating areas of biology today. But like ...
The issue of stem cell research first began on the scientific scene in November of 1998 when researchers first reported the isolation of human embryonic stem cells. The discovery, made by Dr. James A. Thomson, a biologist at the University of Wisconsin, Madison, offered great promise for new ways of treating diseases through stem cell use. The stem cells, which are derived from several-day-old embryos, can theoretically differentiate into virtually any type of human cell, ranging from blood cells to skin cells (American Association for the Advancement of Science, 2011). According to the American Medical Association (2013), a stem cell is an immature cell that has the potential to become specialized into different types of cells throughout the body. There are two basic types of stem cells: adult stems cells and embryonic stem cells. Embryonic stem cells are produced when a newly fertilized egg begins...
Stem cells come from adult stem cells, and embryonic cells. Embryonic (blastocyst) stem cells come from embryos that are usually three to five days old. They contain 150 cells that are useable for stem cell research. These embryos are usually created as in vitro fertilization (a bunch of eggs that are fertilized but only one is put inside of a woman). Reproduction happens when a male’s sperm is fertilized in a woman’s egg to create a zygote (cell). Scientists can verify the cells are embryonic by them being able to be duplicated and the cells ability to become other cell types; this makes embryonic cells flexible. Adult stem cells are found in adult tissues in very small numbers. These cells are only used in certain areas where they are found such as bone marrow or adipose tissue (fat).
Embryonic stem cells have the ability to differentiate into any type of cell. They are mainly found in freshly fertilized eggs, also known as an embryo.5 Adult stem cells are unspecialized and serve the purpose of repairing the tissue they reside in with the use of cell division.6 They are found in tissues and organs along with differentiated cells. There are some similarities and differences regarding these two different types of stem cells. Apart from their abilities and place of origin, embryonic stem cells are very commonly found whereas adult stem cells are rarely found in mature tissues and they are difficult to isolate from their tissue of origin.7