Posted on 02/24/2009 8:33:25 AM PST by GodGunsGuts
Adult Stem Cells, +2; Embryonic Stem Cells, -1
Feb 23, 2009 — Two more successes were chalked up for adult stem cell therapies recently. Science Daily said that sufferers from Crohn’s disease may have a new treatment option by getting injections of their own bone marrow stem cells. This “now constitutes a treatment option to cure an intestinal disease that sometimes does not successfully respond to drugs and requires highly complex surgery that does not provide a cure.”
Those afflicted with type 2 diabetes also have hope, thanks to adult stem cells. Science Daily also reported that progenitor cells exist in the adult pancreas. “It is now clear that progenitor cells, with the capacity to become insulin producing cells, reside in the adult pancreas,” said researchers from UC San Diego and the Burnham Institute for Medical Research. They found that the Wnt signaling pathway is implicated in the development of type 2 diabetes. By understanding these protein-signaling pathways, they can begin to take their stem cell research toward therapeutic treatments.
Not so good for embryonic stem cells. Nature News reported, “Hybrid embryos fail to live up to stem-cell hopes.” Heidi Ledford explained, “The creation of human-animal hybrid embryos – proposed as a way to generate embryonic stem cells without relying on scarce human eggs – has met with legislative hurdles and public outcry. But a paper published this week suggests that the approach has another, more fundamental problem: it may simply not work.” Researchers could not get them to grow past the 16-cell stage, and they failed to become pluripotent. The problem seems more fundamental than trying over and over again. Some ethicists may be glad for that.
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Follow the money. Smart investors are backing adult stem cell research at major universities and research centers, because the procedures work. Embryonic stem cell programs are sold to taxpayers with tear-jerking stories and promises of miracle cures, but to date, no cure is even in sight. Help your taxpayer friends not to be suckers when the next embryonic stem cell hucksters come to your state (e.g., Michigan, 10/15/2008).
Ping!
I can’t remember where I read it, but recently I remember reading something to the effect that embryonic stem cells are more prone to going haywire, as in, proliferating into cancer cells. Politically, I think the far left would love to see embryonic stem cells be more successful than adult stem cells, but that’s not what has happened so far.
guess which one gets all the state and federal gov funding? especially under O
Says a lot about the ethics of scientists if the only thing that is stopping this is just that it isn't working, not whether it's right or wrong.
Ping
Thanks for the ping!
Excellent site. Thank you!
Does anybody have a full list of the adult stem cell treatment successes? I also thought I read somewhere that they were using adult stem cells to treat heart disease.
Oh man, I’m such a dope. I should have read your post. Thanks for the info!
Politically, the whole embryonic stem cell issue is about making sure that there is NO indication in law that the embryo has any intrinsic value worth protecting.
It has nothing to do with the possible cures, etc.
“CA’s Stem-Cell Agency Still Considers Issuing $400M in Debt Despite Deal to Balance Budget”
Now guess whether those “stem cell”s are adult or embryonic cells. Yes, this is a silly question, you knew the answer all along.
Actually, the reason for the embryonic stem cell issue is that the pro-Choicers were tired of having their a$$es handed to them over Partial Birth Abortion, and have contrived to move the debate to the opposite end of the gestational spectrum. They have been remarkably successful in this effort.
Kill one to save some thing wrong with that ratio.
Ping-a-ling!
Adult stem cells =cures
Fetal stem cells=cancer.
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