Human Clones

[Njugle]

Harvard University have entered into the controversial field of genetic science in cloning human embryos for stem cell research, against the wishes of the US government. Harvard are wealthy enough to fund their own research though.

 

This is the thin end of the wedge perhaps, but done with good intention. Is an embryo a human though? Is it expendable for research? Do they indeed "expend" them? Is stem cell research that important?

 

BBC News Story Here

[peeriebryan]

I've looked into the ethics of human cloning a fair bit (google 'posthumanism' 'Andy Miah' and 'Francis Fukuyama') I think it is the beginning of a new age of medical research, but tight controls are required to stop things getting out of hand. I have a look around and get some interesting links together

[turrifield]

I just don't agree with cloning for any purpose but I don't think It can be stopped.

[Muppet]

Theres no doubt in my mind that stem cell research has got to be carried out. I have to say I dont know as much about it as I should, but I believe it has the potential to re-grow pretty much any kind of human tissue you want.

 

Just think of the possibilities. Replacing damaged heart tissue, re-growing severed spinal chords, possible cures for Huntingdons, Motor neurone disease, dementia, the list is endless.

 

Theres really nothing new about it, just that it's never been researched enough. I myself have had a bone marrow transplant using stem cells harvested from my own bloodstream as the transplant tissue. I was lucky enough to have healthy bone marrow to produce the stem cells, just that my bone marrow had to be sacrificed as part of my treatment. Many people dont have that luxury and would need a genetically matched donor source. Without that transplant I quite simply wouldnt be here to bore you with these details.

 

Human cloning however, is a whole different ballgame, with it's own issues.

[turrifield]

I don't think that stem cell research should be carried out, I think that medical research is always gonig in the wrong direction. We should be looking to prevent people from becoming ill rather than concentrating on treatments for illness. Research into causes of illness would help people far more than treatments. Most treatments involve drugs with side effects which can cause serious illness.

 

We all know that smoking and drinking are harmful to our bodies but what about the huge list of barely tested chemicals that we ingest everyday in cleaning products, air freshners, cosmetics, personal hygine products. food ingredients, etc, etc.

 

The effect on health are never considered when new chemicals are introduced the line " the exposure rate is to low to present a risk to health" is to often used. When proper research as not been done.

 

But of coure back medical research there is no money is keeping people away from harmful substances but billions of £ or $ in marketing the latest wonder drug.

[Njugle]

By way of a very brief response to that turrifield, there is a lot of truth in what you're saying. The American drug overlords are inventing new varieties of personality disorders to fit the newest medications they've concocted. Scary but true.

 

Not really anything to do with cloning though.....

[turrifield]

well it is to do with cloning when cloning is used for medical research to find cures for fictitious illnesess.

[peeriebryan]

Rescued section of discussion thread

 

Call me paranoid, but I'd be a lot happier with such research being carried out anywhere but in the US. I don't trust them to do the right thing.

 

I don't have a problem with stem cell research - I think it has huge potential. Cloning? I think that's definitely asking for trouble. I know it's illogical, but I can't help thinking "it's just not natural" whenever I hear the word. We're not careful enough with the things that we research, to explore this responsibly.

 

Genetic modification was supposed to be under tight security and control here..... but it got out of hand almost immediately. Crazy.

 

 

My $0.02 worth

 

 

 

lynnie

Twenty or thirty years down the line when this technology is firmly in place and we are all like "Ooo, it's so great that we can save so many people!", someone is going to point out that we've become a bunch of Frankensteins.

 

Monsters. That is what this technology will create.

 

I think the greatest and most useful development in medical science would be for it to accept that people actually die and that instead of continuingly stalling that fatal day perhaps letting them die has its uses.

I don't think that stem cell research should be carried out, I think that medical research is always gonig in the wrong direction. We should be looking to prevent people from becoming ill rather than concentrating on treatments for illness. Research into causes of illness would help people far more than treatments. Most treatments involve drugs with side effects which can cause serious illness.

 

 

Stem cell research will find ways to prevent illnesses. And many techniques currently being pioneered are far less reliant on traditional drugs, because they treat faulty cells directly. The treatment of genetic disorders using traditional drugs can cause horrendous side effects. Addressing the root cause is far more effective

 

I think to ban stem cell research and deny the medical profession new techniques would be a travesty

I think stem cell research is a great idea. If we can clone new livers/hearts/kidneys for people using stem cells then we should

I think stem cell research is a great idea. If we can clone new livers/hearts/kidneys for people using stem cells then we should

 

 

 

No, its a bad idea. Imagine if everyone was born looking like me

 

This is what it will lead to.

 

For those that don't know what I look like - imagine the love child of Michael Foot and Barbara Cartland

I think stem cell research is a great idea. If we can clone new livers/hearts/kidneys for people using stem cells then we should

Sadly it will be abused. Lots of scientitsts will be selling excess pies and stews

My personal opinion is that no matter how much public outrage there is towards it, it will go ahead. Most of the major pharmaceutical and medical companies live for this. This is a major breakthrough that they can make money from. Same as any other business. They will flog it until somebody buys it. There will always be people with more money than they can spend. If they wake up and are told that they could die in six months they will use that money to prevent that from happening. Whether the stem cell research/cloning is underground or not they will still get the funding. It will happen and there's not one little thing that anybody can do to stop it. Our grandkids will be living to at least two to three times the current life expectancy and then the government will really have to start worrying about the state of the pension crisis.