Stem cells can give rise to any tissue found in the body and thus provide nearly limitless potential for medical applications (regenerative medicine). Numerous regulatory and ethical constraints exist for this area of research. Debates often focus onthe sourcefrom whichstem cells are derived: embryonicor adult tissues. To learn more about recent scientific advances in stem cell research and AMA policy in this area, readthe 2003 AMA report entitledCloning and Stem Cell Research. To learn more about the ethical appropriateness of using embryonic stem cells in biomedical research, particularly where stem cells are derived from cloned human embryos, read the 2003 AMA report entitledCloning-for-Biomedical-Research(PDF, 112KB). For more information on stem cell research, visit the National Institutes of Health (NIH) Stem Cell InformationWeb site. Basics of stem cell research Questions and answers about stem cell research. Human cloning Recent advances in applying somatic cell nuclear transfer technology to produce cloned human embryos has raised concerns about human cloning. More here: Stem Cell Research - American Medical Association … Continue reading →

What Are Stem Cells? Stem cells are undifferentiated, or blank, cells that have the potential to develop into cells that serve many different functions in many parts of the body, such as the heart, lungs, and brain. Most cells in the body are differentiated cells. This means that they can only serve a specific function in a particular organ. For example, red blood cells are cells designed specifically to carry oxygen through the blood. All human beings start out as only one cell. This cell is called a zygote, or a fertilized egg. The zygote divides into two cells, then four cells, and so on. Eventually, the cells begin to specialize and take on the function of a particular part of the body. This process is called differentiation. Stem cells are cells that have not yet differentiated. They have the ability to divide and make an indefinite number of copies of themselves. Other cells in the body can only replicate a limited number of times before they begin to break down. When a stem cell divides, it can either remain a stem cell, or it can turn into a differentiated cell, such as a muscle cell or a red blood … Continue reading →

President Barack Obama said Monday he is allowing federal taxpayer dollars to fund significantly broader research on embryonic stem cells because "medical miracles do not happen simply by accident," and promised his administration would make up for the ground lost under his predecessor. Fulfilling a campaign promise, Mr. Obama signed an executive order expected to set in motion increased research that supporters believe could uncover cures for serious ailments from diabetes to paralysis. Mr. Obama's action, before a packed East Room audience, reverses former President George W. Bush's policy on stem cell research by undoing a 2001 directive that banned federal funding for research into stem lines created after that date. Mr. Bush limited the use of taxpayer money to only the 21 stem cell lines that had been produced before his decision. He argued he was defending human life because days-old embryos - although typically from fertility clinics and already destined for destruction - are destroyed to create the stem cell lines. The Obama order reverses that without addressing a separate legislative ban, which precludes any federal money paying for the development of stem cell lines. The legislation, however, does not prevent funds for research on those lines created … Continue reading →

Toggle: English / Spanish A stem cell is a generic cell that can make exact copies of itself indefinitely. A stem cell has the ability to make specialized cells for various tissues in the body, such as heart muscle, brain tissue, and liver tissue. Stem cells can be saved and usedlater to make specialized cells, when needed. There are two basic types of stem cells: Potential uses for stem cells There are many areas in medicine in which stem cell research could have a significant impact. For example, there are a variety of diseases and injuries in which a patient's cells or tissues are destroyed and must be replaced by tissue or organ transplants. Stem cells may be able to make brand new tissue in these cases, and even cure diseases for which there currently is no good therapy. Diseases that could be helped by stem cells include Stem cells could also be used to gain a better understanding of how genetics work in the early stages of cell development. This can help scientists understand why some cells develop abnormally and lead to medical problems such as birth defects and cancer. This might help scientists learn how to prevent some … Continue reading →

Stem cell research has become one of the biggest issues dividing the scientific and religious communities around the world. At the core of the issue is one central question: When does life begin? At this time, to get stem cells that are reliable, scientists either have to use an embryo that has already been conceived or else clone an embryo using a cell from a patient's body and a donated egg. Either way, to harvest an embryo's stem cells, scientists must destroy it. Although that embryo may only contain four or five cells, some religious leaders say that destroying it is the equivalent of taking a human life. Inevitably, this issue entered the political arena. In 1996, Congress passed a rider to the federal appropriations bill called the Dickey-Wicker amendment. Representatives Jay Dickey and Roger Wicker proposed banning the use of federal monies for any research in which a human embryo is created or destroyed. Federal monies are a primary source of funding for stem cell research. The amendment has been renewed every year since that time. In 2001, President George W. Bush further restricted federal stem cell research. In an executive order, Bush stated that federal funds could only … Continue reading →

Quick links: Stem cells are cells that have the ability to divide for indefinite periods in culture and give rise to multiple specialized cell types. They can develop into blood, bone, brain, muscle, skin and other organs. Stem cells occur naturally, or they can be created from other kinds of cells. Stem cells form during development (embryonic stem cells). They are also present in small numbers in many different tissues (endogenous adult stem cells). Most significantly, stem cells can be created from skin cells (induced pluripotent stem cells, or iPS cells). iPS cells have emerged in recent years as by far the most significant source of stem cells for ALS research. A simple skin biopsy provides the skin cells (fibroblasts). These cells are treated in a lab dish with a precise cocktail of naturally occurring growth factors that turns back the clock, transforming them back into cells much like those that gave rise to themstem cells. Embryonic stem cells can be isolated from fertilized embryos less than a week old. Before the development of iPS cells, human embryos were the only source of human stem cells for research or therapeutic development. The ethical issues involved hindered development of this research. … Continue reading →

Although cancer cell lines provide information about cancer biology, their adaptation to the in vitro environment often results in biological properties that differ in crucial ways from de novo cancer cells. Members of this Research Program have developed a novel mouse model system that reliably permits individual cancer cells isolated directly from patients tumors to be transplanted orthotopically to the same organ or tissue in immunodeficient mice; cells are assayed for the ability to form a new tumor. Members of the program have prospectively identified a minority population of cancer cells in epithelial and hematopoietic malignancies, called cancer stem or initiating cells. The cancer stem cells have the unique ability to drive the growth (through self-renewing cell divisions) and spread of a malignancy in the mouse model system. The prospective isolation of cancer stem cells enables critical regulatory processes of these cells to be studied directly. This should result in the discovery of new therapeutic targets that can be exploited to develop novel and more effective cancer treatments. The specific goals of the Program and how the expertise of the Program members will facilitate their achievement are listed below. Goal 1. To investigate potential pathways critical for self renewal, spread … Continue reading →