Stem Cells Without Moral Corruption

The Washington Post ^ | 07.06.06 | Robert P. George and Eric Cohen

[Coleus]

For the past few years many of the world's leading scientists have promoted so-called therapeutic cloning as the most promising way to produce clinically useful, genetically tailored, biologically versatile stem cells. That is why claims by a team of South Korean researchers -- one in 2004 that the first cloned human embryo had been produced, then another in 2005 that the process of producing embryonic stem cell lines from cloned embryos could be done routinely and efficiently -- were hailed as a watershed.

Hwang Woo Suk, the lead researcher, became an international celebrity. The best American scientists traveled to Seoul to observe his laboratory and study his techniques. Hwang called his work "holy, pure and genuine."

But then the world discovered that it was all a scandalous fraud. Last November, we learned that Hwang had used eggs procured from junior researchers in his own lab -- a violation of the Helsinki Declaration that governs medical research -- and then lied to cover it up. His partner, Roh Sung Il, paid "volunteers" for additional eggs and forced them to lie about it on their consent forms. Then, in a succession of astonishing revelations, it became clear that the published data had been fabricated. Apparently no cloned human embryos were ever produced; no embryonic stem cells were ever created.

Of course, some dismiss the South Korean fraud as the work of a few bad scientific apples and even cite such errant behavior as a reason for American researchers to create and destroy cloned embryos for themselves. Harvard University recently approved research cloning, and some states have set aside public money for such experiments. The scientific argument, made with great hype, remains the same: If you want useful stem cells, you need to create and destroy cloned human embryos.

[Coleus]

Americans Continue to Oppose Funding Stem Cell Research that Destroys Human Embryos (USCCB)

Check the Score

Benefits of Stem Cells to Human Patients - Do No Harm

[supercat]

If you want useful stem cells, you need to create and destroy cloned human embryos.

If you want useful stem cells, you need to get them from something other than human embryos. The embryonic stem cells are useless.

[neverdem]

bump & a ping

[hocndoc]

there's good news -- but the kind hearted elitists-in-favor-of-embryo-destruction warn us not to get our hopes up that they'll quit creating and killing embryos:

http://www.lifeethics.org/www.lifeethics.org/2006/07/truly-ethical-adult-to-embryonic-stem.html

[Dr. Scarpetta]

"Stem-Cell Passage Expected"

http://www.spacedaily.com/reports/Stem_Cell_Passage_Expected_999.html

[MHGinTN]

Cloning will always be morally corrupt because it requires deliberately creating and destroying thousands (or millions) of human embryos. I suppose it is not the job of journalists to go the extra yards and reveal the 'why', but it bothers me when journalists call something morally corrupt without explaining why. So, I'll say it: exploiting embryonic aged human beings is morally corrupt because it is cannibalism, the conceiving and killing of younger humans for the benefit of older humans. This is the issue over which I parted ways with Court Jester Frist, because he mouthed a conservative Christian value system but in the end defends cannibalism if the humans only reach the embryo age in their lifetime.

The point is made in this excellent article that the greatest hope for stem cell cures is to learn how to take one's own stem cells and back them up to pluripotency. Our bodies are teaming with MAPCs (multipotent adult progenitor cells), stem cells waiting for directions to differentiate into tissue lines. Back in 2000, in essays I wrote for FR discussion, I offered that the best hope for stem cell research was to find out how to back up our own cells to the pluripotent stem cell age/stage then bring the cells forward to differentiate inot the needed tissue lines. At least now the Washington Post is sharing this notion with the general populace. One can only hope and pray the effort is not too late, what with the supposed conservative legislators now supporting cannibalism.

[cpforlife.org]

Stem-cell research in a nutshell:

Stem-cell research has been ongoing around the world for more than 20 years. At the close of 2005 there had been at least 65 treatments developed using Adult Stem Cells with many more in the works and great promise for the future. Conversely, at the close of 2005 there had been ZERO treatments developed using Embryonic Stem Cells.

Moreover, according to http://www.stemcellresearch.org, “Embryonic stem cells pose an unusual risk for genetic changes and tumor formation, with the risk increasing the longer the cells are grown, thus making their therapeutic use even more speculative and problematic.”

Embryonic stem cell harvesting kills newly conceived human lives. Thousands of early abortions for a process that does not help and is unnecessary.