Stem Cell Term Paper

English Section 1 Stem Cell Research Term Paper Stem Cells are undifferentiated cells. This means that they can divide and multiply before given a specialized job in the body such as bone cells or skin cells. There are embryonic stem cells, which come from developing embryos, somatic stem cells, which come from adults, and umbilical stem cells, which come from the umbilical blood. (Stem Cell Basics, 2) Although each of these stem cells can all be used to treat a variety of different diseases, embryonic stem cells are the most promising since they are the youngest and most versatile. There is a question of ethics involving stem cell research because obtaining embryonic stem cells means terminating a potential life. When embryonic cells are extracted, the embryo is only 3-5 days old. This means that the embryo has not yet been implanted into the mother’s womb. The debate at hand is weather or not there should be federal funding for embryonic stem cell research. Opponents to stem cell research say that un-implanted human embryos are already human beings, and stopping the process of implanting the embryo into the womb to grow is equivalent to terminating a life.
The three types of stem cells are embryonic stem cells, somatic or adult stem cells, and umbilical stem cells. Embryonic stem cells are harvested from a 3 to 5 day embryo, called a blastocyst. These first cells that start to form from a fertilized egg, are the base for all future cells that will be made to form the rest of the parts of the body including the heart, brain, and tissue. (Stem Cell Basics, 1) Embryonic stem cells can be used to make almost any type of cell that doctors or patients need. They are the most versatile because they are young and in most cases wont be rejected by a body in which they are implanted into. Adult stem cells, or somatic stem cells are undifferentiated cells found in throughout fully grown and specifically working adult cells. The benefit of somatic stem cells is that