Introduction:
Since the human genome has been found, the genetics of animals have undergone continuous study in order to find the mechanism for replication. By studying the genes of organisms that can replicate, for example mice and salamanders, the process of replication is understood, together with the specific genes that enables this ability. This brings about the question whether or not humans can be altered genetically in order to enable the viability for human limb regeneration, due to the research completed on animals.
Researchers completed various tests on animals and made breakthroughs regarding the necessity of stem cells in regeneration and how to induce human adult stem cells to become stem cells. Furthermore, researchers have found that by altering the DNA in vertebrae via genetic engineering; small scale regeneration is possible. Another contributing factor to small scale regeneration is advancing technologies which produce gene specific and regenerative medicine. This regenerative medicine aids in the regeneration of small limbs such as the tip of a finger. The aim of the research is to determine whether or not research on animals is increasing the possibility of human limb regeneration in the near future.
How DNA is linked to regeneration:
Regeneration is a process whereby the lost or destroyed organs or limbs are able to regrow itself (The American Heritage Medical Dictionary, 2010). Regeneration occurs daily due to a cellular activity, namely Deoxyribonucleic acid (DNA) synthesis (Asharifzadeh, 2014). DNA (figure 1) is a molecule that contains all the genetic and hereditary information of an organism. The double helix structure, consisting of phosphate, sugar and a nitrogenous base, is found withi...
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... in debate, many of the ethical concerns are being eliminated by the benefits that could be reaped from the regenerative medicine. War victims, amputees, accident victims, children born with disabilities and patients requiring organ transplants would be able to benefit from the medicine.
It is my opinion that due to all the contributing factors of current genetic research and breakthroughs in the field of genetics involved in regeneration within animals, such as gene p21 and gene p53, together with the advancements in technology pertaining to genetic engineering in terms of the ability to grow gene specific organs outside of the body and create gene specific medication, as well as the availability of organisms to study, human limb regeneration is a future possibility, albeit there are great amounts of research required to ensure the effectiveness of the technology
While findings of these experiments do not suggest the ability of the zebrafish to regenerate from a single stem cell, they do indicate that the animals rely on their unlimited regenerative capacity to heal after injury. The fact that they can rapidly regrow body parts with scaring show how intriguing these small organisms are. The mechanisms involved in regeneration in zebrafish have provided insight into human biological processes, due to its genetic similarity to humans.
The human body endures a great deal of wear and injury during its lifetime. It is for this reason that the body has several tissues that are capable of regeneration. Bone is one of those tissues that receives extensive use so it is necessary that it is strong in order to carry out its functions; however, it will occasionally face injury. Although our bones are capable of regeneration, a new method would help the elderly and others that have a more difficult time healing after injury. I viewed a “TED Talk” lecture, which discussed a new way of regenerating bone with the help of our own bodies. Molly Stevens, the head of a biomaterials lab, presented “A New Way to Grow Bone” where she discussed a new technique called “in vivo bioreactor”. She also answered why this new procedure is beneficial. Researchers like Stevens are constantly trying to find innovative new techniques and they do this by asking questions. The question that Stevens presented in the video was an intriguing one: “Can we recreate the regeneration of bone on demand and transplant it?”.
...velopment of tissues to replace damaged organs in the human body. Scientists have discovered for the first time how stem cells could be generated from embryo’s that were produced using adult stem cells.
Studies are frequently made in order to narrow down exactly what gives salamanders and some species of fish the ability to regenerate lost limbs. The results show that through reprogramming different cells, proliferation and...
Nairne, P., Allen, I., Andrews, J., Brazier, M., Forrester, D., Heap, B. (1996). The ethics of xenotransplantation: Animal-to-Human Transplants. Retrieved from http://www.nuffieldbioethics.org/sites/default/files/xenotransplantation.pdf
Since organs are on short supply throughout the world scientists have taken to trying to create organs in the lab. The field of organ growing is possible thanks to recent advances in stem-cell research and is commonly known as ‘tissue engineering’. Tissue engineering uses the patient’s own cells to build new organs or replace damaged tissues in the patient’s own organs, which is called grafting.3The process works by differentiating pluri-potent stem-cells into the cells that the patient needs. The cells are then allowed to grow and multiply in a nutrient solution. When the cells are in adequate numbers they are sometimes inserted into the patients existing tissue but are most commonly used to grow a new organ or tissue graft.
The Human Genome Project The Human Genome Project began in the mid - 1980s as an international scientific mission to map all the genetic material (i.e. genes) in human chromosomes and ultimately build the complete set of genetic information contained within molecules of deoxyribosenucleic acid (DNA) known as the genome. The project aims to improve the methods used to prevent and cure diseases because the keys to many of the worst illnesses of our time, like cancer and diabetes, can be found in genetic variations in DNA. The Human Genome Project is international, and has involved collaborations and contributions from researchers throughout the world, all of whom have donated their results freely to the public databases. It is the largest collaborative project ever attempted in biology, involving scientists in the USA, Australia, Japan, Germany, the UK, Italy, Russia, France, the Netherlands, Canada, Israel and elsewhere. The Human Genome Project aims to: * Determine the sequence of the four bases (adenine, cytosine, thymine and guanine) throughout all the DNA in human cells; * Identify the estimated 100 000 genes formed by the bases; * Find the locations of the genes on the 23 human chromosomes; * Store all this information on databases for future research; * Consider all the ethical, legal and social issues which arise from obtaining information about the human genome.
The quantity of organs available for transplantation is already far less than the demand, and the demand may grow substantially in close to future. For this reason, we have to think how organ function might be replaced in the future. The obstacles to applying new technologies and now those obstacles might be overcome in the developing of new approach for organ replacement. the obstacles of organ replacement might be addressed if various technologies could be pieced together in a way that exploits the advantages of each technology. Thus, nuclear cloning (the transfer of a nuclei from somatic cells of the individual to be treated into primitive enucleated cells (SCNT), allowing the reprogramming of DNA) could be used to generate embryonic stem
“Miraculous Recovery: Rat Regenerates Heart”, was the compelling article title in my Human Anatomy class that introduced me to tissue engineering. The notion of using stem cells to recreate an entire organ, of using the decellularized extracellular matrix of a rat to reanimate a heart, was simply astounding. I read more about this field and found out how it is thanks to tissue regeneration that man regrew a part of his finger after a toy helicopter accident, a boy received
Ten of each species were divided again into two and were specified into one control group and four experiment groups. Afterwards, oxytocin was injected into each group with different concentration and observed the effect of oxytocin on regeneration. As a result, as for axolotl, one could evidently determine the optimal concentration of oxytocin and could even compare and analyze the effect of regeneration on different areas of the body. In addition, by looking at the experiment with pander mice (pander mice were used to experiment whether oxytocin had an influence on mammals like humans) compared to the control group, where purified water was injected, the effect was clearly shown with fast wound regeneration and increased appetite symptoms in the experiment group. However, a difference occurred with pander mice, unlike axolotl, with the amount of regeneration of skin and joints. Thus, it was concluded that mammals have different regeneration ability in accordance with the tissue and it was also noted that permanent tissue cells like the tail does not regenerate when
As the human race is moving towards advancement the number of diseases and disorders are also on increase. To fight against these problems many new health care field have emerged since the past half-decade. Most promising of those fields is the Regenerative medicine. Regenerative medicine is a multidisciplinary field concerned with creating living, functional tissues to repair or replace tissue or organ function lost due to age, disease, or congenital defects (US National Institute of Health). It has been 20 years since the idea of Regenerative Medicine sprung. It all started with the use of tissue engineering to replace body organs or tissues by the ones grown in lab made using the cells from the targeted organs. Since the discovery of stem cells, most research in the field of regenerative medicine has been focused on the manipulating stem cells so they can be used to repair or replace any type of body cell or tissue which before the stem cell discovery was not possible. And so with time the two terms regenerative medicine and stem cells have become quite linked. This field has grabbed a great amount of international attention considering its promising ability to cure many incurable diseases, especially cancers and mental disease, and resulting in better health standards for humans. Basically regenerative medicine is evolution of the modern medicine. DR Pascal J. Goldschmidt, dean of the University of Miami School of Medicine a pioneer institute of research in regenerative medicine, te...
The major controversy is surrounding the ethics of cloning because some of its methods involve the use and destruction of human embryos: “Many opponents disapprove of this research on the belief that the human embryo should be accorded full moral status” (Brown, 2009, p. 77). This belief is misleading, however. This is because “…scientists can now use adult skin cells to create a stem cell very similar to embryonic cells, but without the need for embryos… These induced cells also sidestep the ethical issues of embryonic stem cells, which are often created by destroying embryos” (Pollack, 2013, para. 12-13). So although therapeutic cloning is still controversial today, progress such as taking adult skin cells and converting them to embryonic stem cells, has been made to circumvent the problems surrounding cloning. Due to this progress, a whole new age of regenerative medicine could take place in the near
In discussing stem cell research and its importance, it is imperative there is an understanding into the controlled ethics that can be put in place to reduce the possible misuse and moral dilemmas that are faced with this type of research.
One of the most beneficial aspects to cloning is the ability to duplicate organs. Many patients in hospitals are waiting for transplants and many of them are dying because they are not receiving a needed organ. To solve this problem, scientists have been using embryonic stem cells to produce organs or tissues to repair or replace damaged ones (Human Cloning). Skin for burn victims, brain cells for the brain damaged, hearts, lungs, livers, and kidneys can all be produced. By combining the technology of stem cell research and human cloning, it will be possible to produce the needed tissues and organs for patients in desperate need for a transplant (Human Cloning). The waiting list for transplants will become a lot shorter and a lot less people will have to suff...
The field of regenerative medicine encompasses numerous strategies, including the use of materials and de novo generated cells, as well as various combinations thereof, to take the place of missing tissue, effectively replacing it both structurally and functionally, or to contribute to tissue healing[29]