Ethical Implications of Cloning and Stem Cell Research Essay

Bio- checkup breakthroughs in the fields of genetic and t growth engineering hold gravid look to. However, as modern medicine advances, it often poses major ethical issues on which people are seriously divided. The competition in favor of exercise with look for at unrestrained pace is mainly advocated by scientists and medical experts who would like to see some fantastic therapeutic benefits that science promises in the form of stand cell technologies. Scientists are absolutely thrilled by the possibilities looming on the horizon (Thompson, Harrub 2001c).On the other side of the debate are people, sometimes led by religious groups, who are concerned we may going too far too fast, using unacceptable mover and in unknown directions. home cell research has the greatest potential drop for saving lives, except is controversial for its research based on embryos and fet roles (Rickard 2002). Stem cells are immature and un narrow down cells that that possess both the capacity to rejuvenate themselves indefinitely as well as the capability to differentiate themselves into specialized and mature cells.Mature cells, such as the hearts myocytes or the livers hepatocytes, stop dividing after several dozen divisions, period straw cells can keep on dividing indefinitely, either renewing themselves or bringing out specialized cells. There are four types of stand cells in the gay body 1) adult understructure cells, 2) fetal stem cells 3) embryonic stem cells, and 4) nuclear transplant stem cells. For the first lead months of pregnancy, a fertilized cell, or zygote, divides and grows in the mothers womb and is referred to as an embryo.The embryos stem cells are the precursors of the development of a have a go at it charitable baby. They produce all of the bodys various hundred trillion cells. It should become possible to use embryonic stem cells to revitalise any type of cell that the body needs. When the embryo assumes an apparent human body form, it beco mes a fetus. Because the fetus is growing rapidly, all tissues and variety meat, including the brain, contain stem cells. It is for this reason that stem cell researchers are interested in analyse fetal tissues.Studies suggest that human embryonic stem cells have long potential in terms of developing into multiple tissue types and long self-renewal. Therefore, stem cell research entails the intentional creation of human embryos in the highly artificial context of an IVF clinic, using clone techniques, and discarding them after their use for research is exhausted (Thompson, Harrub 2001a). The question to be resolved is whether research on embryonic stem cells constitutes a violation of fundamental human rights, in particular the principle of respect for human dignity and the right of animation.However, many a(prenominal) believe that conception/fertilization is not a moment but a process, and the early development does not indicate true identity operator in any sense of the wo rd, and therefore there is violation of human rights. The promise of embryo research, liberal-minded people tend to think, is too real to throw out any longer by sticking to conservative attitudes that stand in the face of pragmatism. And yet, even they would flinch at the possibilities of fruitful copy.The difference between therapeutic clone using embryonic stem cells (stem cell research) and fruitful cloning is the distinction between creating cloned body tissue or organs for therapeutic purposes and creating cloned human beings. Reproductive cloning is generally viewed as morally abhorrent because it is seen as unnatural and a commodification of human life, and it captures public fears well-nigh the power of science to pursue a eugenic agenda.When governmental organizations of now debate ban on human cloning, the main issue in such debates would be whether to ban outright all forms of embryo cloning, which a number of countries seem to support, or to permit the cloning of embryos for research purposes (therapeutic cloning/ stem cell research) while outlawing human reproductive cloning. Besides reproductive cloning, there is another untoward ramification to therapeutic cloning, which is cloning for enhancement.The issue of using advances in stem cell research for the purposes of enhancement, as against altogether therapeutic purposes, opens up a Pandoras box of all kinds of complications, ethical, social, psychological, philosophic and practical. For instance, stem cell approaches might help to cure Parkinsons patients, but, in the not too distant future, they could also be used to reform brain functions. Rich people would be able to afford this therapy and unforesightful people would not. This could create a most undesirable stratification of the society. scarcely where does therapeutic cloning end, and enhancement cloning begin even if cloning was advanced for purely therapeutic purposes, it would soon spread into the domain of enhancement. Thi s is the argument of slippery slope comm but advanced against all biomedical research involving genetic and cellular manipulation. Last but not least, thanks to the promise that genetic engineering and human cloning research hold, the prospects of achieving capabilities for indefinite life extension even deep down the next twenty to thirty days are very high (Thompson, Harrub 2001b).The consequences of physical immortality for whole populations are exactly inconceivable. But today, the possibility of human race becoming permanently interminable looms uncomfortably close to us. Therefore it becomes imperative that something be done to stem the advances of genetic and cloning research before the situation goes out of hand. A number of states have already enacted specific cloning-ban legislation, either banning the cloning of humans or imposing a moratorium on cloning within the state. Other states have taken action at least to envision formally similar legislation.At federal leve l, the Human Cloning prohibition fleck of 2003, which bans the process of human cloning for any purpose and the consequence of any product derived from an embryo created via cloning, was passed by the U. S. House of Representatives on 27 February 2003. It was not ratified by the senate though. The Human Cloning Prohibition Act of 2005 bans only reproductive cloning while allowing therapeutic cloning. To date, federal regulations only prohibit federal funding for research into human cloning (Cash 2005).though the science of bio-medical engineering is making rapid strides, and offers the promise of unveiling radical new therapies, s suggest the fact that a technology exists does not imply that anyone who can pay for it can be automatically allowed to use it. This is because the uphill genetic and cellular techniques and technologies raise all kinds of issues, ethical, philosophical, social, psychological and so on. They be given with them implications very difficult even to compre hend.