1. Marley Emerich
Gr. 9
Biology/Chemistry
Stem Cells One World Essay
Beijing BISS International School
School Code: 1123
Date Submitted: September 26, 2011

2. What if one cell could be the cure to cancer? What if one cell could cure
Parkinson’s disease, or a paralyzed body? Scientists worldwide are already hard at work
in perfecting the art of Embryonic Stem Cell transplants. An embryonic stem cell is
totipotent, which means it can become any cell in your body. For this reason embryonic
stem cells are so valuable. Imagine a world where a simple stem cell transplant could
cure cancer or bring back someone’s paralyzed legs. Scientists harvest the stem cells
from an embryo and have been trying to cure illnesses and injuries with these cells.
Embryonic Stem Cell research is a recent study only to spark interest around 1995.
Because of its many ethical controversies, in 1999 the congress in the United States
banned any federal or government funding of the studies. Any studies and trials would
have to be funded privately. Until 2009, President Obama lifted the law and allowed the
government to fund the studies. , (2009, Obama Ends Stem Cell Research Ban, CBS
NEWS) Now, with endless possibilities there is even more hope to what embryonic stem
cell research can do. But there are many issues presented with the research as well.
Ethical as well as political and some religious issues arise when the topic of embryonic
stem cell research comes up. In this One World Essay I will discuss the science of stem
cells and how to harvest them, the advantages and disadvantages of using them, and
finally the One World Issues and their relationship to the stem cell research. First off, I
will describe the science of acquiring stem cells.

3. There are two
main methods to
acquiring stem cells.
There is the method that
requires embryonic stem
cells and the method that
uses therapeutic cloning
to create stem cell lines.
The method that most
scientists are eager to
Figure
1
-­‐
One
form
of
stem
cell
cultivation.
Using
IVF.
(Stem
Cells,
Year
Progress
Report,
perfect is embryonic
whyflies.org
stem cell method. This
method is more useful because embryonic stem cells can become any other cell in your
body. Figure 1 shows how it is done. The procedure begins with harvesting or taking a
fertilized embryo that was made using In Vitro Fertilization from a donor. In Vitro
Fertilization is a way of creating embryos without actual intercourse. The sperm is
mixed with egg in a dish and then used either for research or planted in a woman’s
uterus. After the embryo is fertilized, a scientist takes a single cell from the embryo,
which is then put into a dish, which contains all vital nutrients and suitable environment
for the cell to survive and grow. Scientists hope to use these cells to one day grow new
healthy organs or cure diseases like cancer by replacing the mutated cells with new and
healthy ones. (cord-blood-cells.com, Harvesting Embryonic Stem Cells) This is just one

4. of the procedures that involves stem cells but it is the one with the most controversy
because you kill the embryo in the process. But learning about both the advantages and
disadvantages of the research is a key element in why there is so much controversy in
the research.
There are many advantages
to using stem cells. The biggest
advantage is the ability to use the
growing stem cells to make new
organs and tissues. People
worldwide have already been using
adult, embryonic, and cloned stem
cells to treat diseases like
Figure
2
-­‐
Since
March
of
2010,
the
amount
of
people
treated
with
Parkinson’s or Leukemia. Scientists
Stem
Cell
therapy
for
their
conditions
successfully.
(Canadian
Stem
Cell
Foundation
Blog,
2010
have also successfully made
bladders of all sizes out of stem cells. Dr. Anothony Atala (Wake Forest University) has
created multiple bladders and almost every type of human cell. Bladders can easily be
made outside of the human body, as can many other cells and even heart valves with the
help of stem cells. Although some of the more complex cells like pancreas, liver, and
nerve cells cannot survive growing in a dish. Another huge advantage to adult stem cell
transplants in particular is that a donor can use his or her own tissue (or DNA) to
generate new skin or other organs. This means that donors and doctors don’t have to
worry about donor rejection or any infections that another person’s tissue could cause.
Dr. Atala also discovered that amniotic fluids contain stem cells. This is another

5. advantage because their stem cells fluids can help regenerate the cells that can’t grow in
a dish and have also proven to grow muscle and bone. (Alice Park, The Science of
Growing Body Parts, www.time.com, 2007) One day, this process could work for every
single organ and disease, and millions of sick people could be saved. But there are
always disadvantages to research like this as well.
There are several disadvantages to using stem cells. One is the serious problem
with donor rejections. While with some cases donor rejection is not usually a problem
there is always the possibility of it. For example, if someone gets a bladder transplant
made by embryonic stem cells, there is a possibility the patients body would reject the
transplant because it detects it as a foreign object and would attack the organ. This
could cause serious illness or infections depending on the situation. Sometimes it’s not
just infection but instead the cells mutate and could cause tumors and at many times,
cancer. Another disadvantage is, the process of getting donors is also a very long and
painful one. When women donate eggs it is not only very painful and costly, but a
woman can only donate a certain amount of eggs at a time. For the women, there is a
risk of infertility after the surgery. There is also the possibility of infection or bleeding
which could possibly alter the woman’s fertility or ability to conceive children. IVF1, Egg
Donor Risks, ivf1.com) And with the limited amount of eggs a woman can donate at a
time, over 500,000 women would have to be willing to do so for enough eggs for
successful research or transplants. This number is very unrealistic and is a major
disadvantage. So not only can stem cells be dangerous and the process be painful for
both the donor and patient, but also there are some major ethical issues presented with

6. it.
Some people consider a child to be alive the minute it is conceived. Other people
believe that it’s months until the child develops awareness and a brain for it to be
considered alive in the mother’s womb. With every embryonic stem cell procedure, or
bit of research, an embryo has to die. Embryos in this research are taken from the
blastocyst, which is the embryo five days into gestation. But because the child has not
really formed, and was made for the purpose of stem cell research and made using in-
vitro fertilization, it’s a debate on whether using the embryonic stem cells is killing or
not. Most scientists and many other people believe that using this embryo is not killing a
human life and that the child has not formed at all and the embryo was made for the
purpose of research. If the problem people have with embryonic stem cell transplant is
the idea of killing a potential human that would grow and live, then they need to take
into consideration that 73% of IVF (in-vitro fertilization) transplants don’t survive
anyway. That is, 1 out of 4 IVF transplants survive, so the embryo harvested probably
wouldn’t have survived anyway. (http://reliableinfertilityanswers.com/ivf-statistics/)
Although, there are many religious groups and people who think that from the moment
of conception, that embryo is a living human soul. It is also a fact that at the moment of
conception, all the embryos DNA and genetic material is formed. This is technically
giving it a unique structure and what some people believe to be its soul or personality.
What would this child have become? What could he or she have done for the world if it
had been born? (Dónal P. O'Mathúna, PhD, http://cbhd.org, 2000) Even if it is helping
a human life, no one has the right to take away another. Both sides have good points,

7. but no one can say for certain which one is right. But there are also some political issues
presented with stem cells.
Federal funding for stem cell research was banned for eight years in the United
States. (B.A Robinson, Politics of Extracting New Stem Cell Lines,
religioustolerance,org, 2003) In eight years, the amount of research and discoveries
that could have been made are enormous. Because there was no government funding of
the research, scientists doing trials and studies had to rely on donations alone. Religious
groups would cause scenes and protests around the country because they disagreed with
stem cell research. For this reason, the studies were frowned upon in the United States
for many years. Other countries such as China, Australia, and Singapore excelled in
research for many years. In 2008, President Obama revoked the law because "medical
miracles do not happen simply by accident," (2009, Obama Ends Stem Cell Research
Ban, CBS NEWS) and promised his administration would make up for the ground lost
under his predecessor. This was a major step and since then there has been more
progress and discoveries with stem cells. But many people still strongly disagree with
the research. The protests and unhappiness of the people causes bad press and makes
the government look bad. There was much controversy that this was the reason that the
government banned the funding before, because it caused bad press. This was the
reason the United States banned it. But in the end, this research is more beneficial
towards the government than it is bad. More people in the United States are being
treated for diseases and injuries. The more discoveries the Untied States makes, the
more the other countries who support stem cell research will approve of them. This
research could possibly bring countries together peacefully. It aids the country

8. economically, politically, and it helps the thousands of people who are getting treated by
stem cells.
Personally, I find nothing wrong with Stem Cell research. If scientists can perfect
it, every disease and injury will be able to be cured. Imagine a world with no sick. No
one dying of cancer or AIDS. There will never be anyone who can’t walk again. If the
donor is willing to give her egg for research then so be it. There was no real conception.
The egg was made for research and hasn’t developed any consciousness or organs. It is
not a human. So in the end, stem cell research is a tremendous and amazing discovery
that has benefited the world in so many ways. It has cured diseases and injuries,
harvested new organs, and saved lives. Whether or not it’s taking a life or not, the
research has saved thousands upon thousands of lives and will continue to with the
research still rolling in. The laws have been lifted and the doors to the discoveries have
opened. It’s not taking a life; it’s giving it back to the thousands who might lose it.

9. Bibliography:
• CBCNEWS. "Obama Ends Stem Cell Research Ban - CBS News." Breaking News
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2011.<http://www.cbsnews.com/stories/2009/03/09/politics/100days/domesticissues/
main4853385.shtml>.
• Clark, Janet Mulroney. "Moral Issues in Stem Cell Research | eHow.com." eHow | How
to Videos, Articles & More - Trusted Advice for the Curious Life | eHow.com. N.p., n.d.
Web. 7 Sept. 2011. <http://www.ehow.com/about_5245173_moral-issues-stem-cell-
research.html>.
• Deem, Rich. "What is Wrong With Embryonic Stem Cell Research?." Evidence for God
from Science. N.p., n.d. Web. 7 Sept. 2011.
<http://www.godandscience.org/doctrine/stem_cell_research.html>.
• Doerflinger, Richard. "Stem Cell Research." Home Page. N.p., n.d. Web. 25 Sept. 2011.
<http://www.nebcathcon.org/Stemcell/stem_cell_research.htm>. "Egg Donor Risks |
• Egg Donation Risks." IVF Fertility Clinic | Chicago Infertility Specialist - Dr. Randy
Morris. N.p., n.d. Web. 25 Sept. 2011. <http://www.ivf1.com/egg-donor-risk/>.
• "Harvesting Embryonic Stem Cells | Cord Blood Cells." Cord Blood Cells . N.p., n.d. Web.
25 Sept. 2011. <http://cord-blood-cells.com/harvesting-embryonic-stem-cells.html>
• O'Mathúna, Dónal P. . "Cloning and Stem Cell Research: Wrong Motives on Both Sides
of the Atlantic | The Center for Bioethics & Human Dignity." Home | The Center for
Bioethics & Human Dignity. N.p., n.d. Web. 25 Sept. 2011.
<http://cbhd.org/content/cloning-and-stem-cell-research-wrong-motives-both-sides-
atlantic>.
• Robinson, B.A.. "Human stem cell research." Religious Tolerance. N.p., 9 Nov. 2003.
Web. 7 Sept. 2011. http://www.religioustolerance.org/res_stem5.htm
• "Stem cells: What they are and what they do - MayoClinic.com." Mayo Clinic. N.p., n.d.
Web. 7 Sept. 2011. <http://www.mayoclinic.com/health/stem-cells/CA00081>.
• "The Science of Growing Body Parts - TIME." Breaking News, Analysis, Politics, Blogs,
News Photos, Video, Tech Reviews - TIME.com. N.p., n.d. Web. 20 Sept. 2011.
<http://www.time.com/time/health/article/0,8599,1679115,00.html>.
• Vestal, Christine . "Stem Cell Research at the Crossroads of Religion and Politics - Pew
Forum on Religion & Public Life." Pew Forum on Religion & Public Life. N.p., 17 July
2008. Web. 7 Sept. 2011. http://pewforum.org/Science-and-Bioethics/Stem-Cell-
Research-at-the-Crossroads-of-Religion-and-Politics.aspx
Pictures:
• Bio-bombshell." The Why Files | The Science Behind the News. N.p., n.d.
Web. 25 Sept. 2011. http://whyfiles.org/189stem_cell/2.html
• "March « 2010 « The Stem Cell Foundation Blog." Renew the World. N.p.,
n.d. Web. 25 Sept. 2011. <http://stemcellfoundation.ca/blog/2010/03/>