Embryonic Stem Cell - Case Study Example

Embryonic Stem Cell Research By Student’s Name Course + Code Class Institution Date Table of Contents Abstract 3 Introduction 3 Literature review 4 Ethical issues 5 Approaches used in determining stem cell ethicaality 6 Grouping people according to the opinions 6 Human dignity 7 Safety as an issue of concern in the stem cell research 7 Issues concerning Informed consent 9 Arguments in the research: Slippery slope 9 Ethical steps and components in research design 10 1. Sourcing of the Stem Cell Material 10 i. Donor consent 10 ii. Donor screening 10 2. The Manufacture of the Stem Cell Material 10 i. Quality control in manufacture 11 ii. Processing and manufacture oversight 11 iii. Components in culture or preservation of cells 11 iv. Release criteria 11 v. Repositories and Databases 12 Recommendations 12 Conclusion 12 References 14 Abstract Stem cell research is a discipline that has many controversial issues leading to the increase in the debate about its ethicality. The two primary sources of stem cell are adult stem cells and embryonic stem cell. The embryonic stem cell research entails the loss of the foetus leading to the concern by the various groups such as the political, religious, and social groups. The primary reason for these concerns is the fact that people do not agree on the point which life begins. The ethical issues involved in the embryonic stem cell research include safety, human dignity, and informed consent among others. The researchers are also supposed to follow certain steps to ensure that they remain ethical as discussed in this paper. Also included in this article is the recommendation that the researchers should follow if they want to stay ethical and ensure that they have their clients’ trust and referrals. Introduction Today, scientists are embracing new technologies such stem cells for the therapy and prevention of various diseases such as the development of microcephaly. This study presents the primary sources of stem cell, embryonic stem cell, and adult stem cell and covers the ethical issues associated with the two sources. Company ABC has clinical trials seem to support embryonic stem cell research over the adult stem cell research. However, to approve one source over the other, this paper will cover the various studies on stem cell research and pay close attention to the moral concerns linked with the type of research that seems to be the best according to the numerous scholars that have shown interest in the same discipline. Literature review Company ABC has the option of using either the adult stem cells or the embryonic stem cells. However, according to the clinical trials by the firm, the embryonic stem cells prove to be more efficient than the adult stem cells because they have higher reduction rates as compared to the adult stem cells. The debate on whether to use adult stem cells or embryonic stems cells has received a lot of attention from numerous researchers who aim at reaching a ground that will identify the best option. A good example is the study by Caroline Torrisi that shades some light on the discipline. According to Torrisi (2007), there are four ways from which the embryonic stem cells can be derived. Firstly, it can be created from the surplus embryos that have been created in vitro fertilization. Secondly, they can be acquired from embryos that were created for the purpose of in vitro fertilization. Thirdly, they can be derived from the semantic nuclear transfer that achieves other goals such as avoiding immune rejection of transplanted cells. Fourthly, the can be obtained via pathogenesis in which the egg goes through division without fertilization after being stimulated in vitro. The other source of that Caroline Torrisi examined is the adult stem cells. These cells can be found in the tissues of the human body, and they have a high tendency of renewing themselves and differentiating to replace the lost and damaged cells. The members of the human body that have high numbers of these cells include the brain, umbilical cord, placenta, skin, blood vessels, liver, bone marrow, and the skeletal muscle (Torrisi, p. 147). The study by Caroline Torrisi also recognized the past debates on the same topic. The embryonic stem cell research began with the extraction of the same from mouse embryos that opened does to the embryonic stem cell research. However, the foetal stem cell extraction was banned in the 1980s until 1994 when President Clinton lifted the limitation on governmental funding of foetal tissue research. The stem cell research has a bright future since many organizations are willing to invest in it. For instance, Europe’s Virgin Health Group has set a lead that many companies are likely going to follow (Torrisi, 2007 p. 161). The availability of the cord blood cells stored in the public and private sector will naturally encourage more extensive research in the field. Although clinical trials by the company indicated that embryonic stem cells reduced the Zika virus more than the adult stem cells, other researchers have a varying opinion. For instance, it is argued that the adult stem cells have immediate clinical application and offers safety and feasibility features that other sources do not provide. Even today, many scholars believe that adult stem cells continue to produce more results and for this reason, a lot of focus regarding research has shifted to the adult stem cell production. However, the stem cell research has ethical issues that have to be acknowledged. Ethical issues Numerous people have varying views on the morality of the stem cell research regarding the source of the stem cells, the mode of extraction and the use. However, very few people pay attention to the use of adult stem cells as compared to the embryonic stem cells that have faced more serious ethical debates. Today, many groups of people including religious people, politicians, researchers, and lawyers have a lot of concern on the same. The degree of the ethicality of the technology seems to vary with the society in focus. For instance, Zarzeczny and Caulfield (2009) carried out a study in Canada and found out that the people had several concerns regarding the stem cell technology. The main areas of concern by the people from Canada are theories on policy development, the supply of embryos, mental capital issues, the call for guidelines and rules, monetary issues regarding research, and issues that dealt with science and health (Zarzeczny & Caulfield, 2009). Approaches used in determining stem cell ethicaality The stem cell technology has ethical concerns that can be viewed from various perspectives including the use of ethical approaches such as pricipalism, utilitarianism, and deontology. Depending on the method used and the parties involved, the stem cell research can be rejected or appraised. A good example is a utilitarian approach that will naturally examine an action by looking at its benefits and comparing the ratio of benefit to harm in order to support the activity. On the other hand, deontology is based on the belief that the people with the duty to help must implement the research to perform their duty successfully. Whereas the first two approaches may seem to support the stem cell research, the principle-based ethics may or may not support it because it involves a criminal analysis of the rightness and wrongness of the research. Grouping people according to the opinions It is easy to group people basing on the opinions they hold regarding the stem cell research. For instance, the first group could be the ones that focus on human dignity. These people believe that every human being is entitled to the right of life regardless of the stage such foetus should be protected and respected. A critical view on the belief of these people shows that they subscribe to the deontology approach because it gives the parties involved the duty to ensure the wellness of others. The other group is the one that supports that research because it has advantages such as saving of human lives and removal of suffering on people. The second group seems to subscribe to the utilitarian approach because it allows the sacrifice of a smaller number of people for the wellness of a greater number of individuals (Drabiak-Syed, 2013). Human dignity The acquisition of stem cells forms the embryo involves the extraction of the blastocysts which destroy the human embryo. According to the many people that are against the embryonic stem cell research, especially the religious group, believe that life begins at conception. For this reason, the extraction of embryonic stem cell extraction is equated to killing because the embryo is destroyed during the process. The destruction of the embryo of the focus of the argument because many believe that is considered a person because it has the potential to develop into a person. On the other hand, some people do not pay much attention to the foetus (Hyun, 2013). However, the moral arguments on the rational arguments vary a lot with the people involved. For instance, it is believed that the embryos are more than just cells but not equal to persons. As a result, the embryos are supposed to be respected but the respect ought not to equal that of fully developed human beings. The moral arguments further claim that the state of the human embryo increases in a gradual manner as the development process of the embryo takes place in the uterus. In the end, during birth, the foetus is entitled to the rights of human being (Ishii, Pera and Greely, 2013). Safety as an issue of concern in the stem cell research The potential of the benefits of stem cells in the prevention of the development of microcephaly has left many people excited about the same. As a result, scientists are pressured to do more research in the field to ensure that they deliver the benefits expected by the public. However, the stem cell research has some serious concerns since it threatens the safety of human beings. The reason for this is that substantial evidentiary supportand data are not analysed in the human clinical trials making claims that the stem cells are powerful and important not validated (Dresser, 2010). Therefore, it means that attention must be given to the safety and efficacy of the study. There are several risks associated with the stem cell treatment. For instance, patients are likely to develop growths after the stem cell injection (Amariglio et al., 2009). Because of this, it has received attention from parties concerned with safety and quality of therapeutic and moral measures before the utilization of these clinical treatments. However, many people claim that the stem cell research is still new and cannot be viewed as a clinical procedure. For this reason, the destruction of the embryo cannot be justified because of the non-maleficence principle. It has also been defended by the belief that any infliction given to the community by the elimination of the foetuses is more significant Religious perspectives on embryonic stem cell research Determining the point at which life begins is not that easy, and this is the source of the arguments in the stem cell research. Several religious groups believe that ensoulment makes the entity a human being. According to Judaism, the extracorporeal embryo is considered a genetic material in the preimpalnation state. For this reason, Judaism permits stem cell research (Hunman, 2009). The Jewish also seem to coincide with the stem cell research since they believe that the human foetus is deemed divine only after the third month of the pregnancy (Zahedi-Anaraki and Larijani, 2012). According to Christians, life begins at conception and for this reason, stem cell research is not accepted primarily by the Catholics. However, the less conservative Protestants support stem cell research before 14 days after fertilization (Broxmeyer and Kanjhan, 2016) According to Al - Hussaini and Kateb(2012) Muslims support the research with the exception of a few Muslim states. The Muslims that support the research claims that the decision should be based on both the benefits and limitations of the study (Al - Hussaini and Kateb, 2012). Issues concerning Informed consent In many cases, people are never acutely aware of the stem cell research and therefore, lack the necessary information to make a decision regarding the study. It is also true that many medical firms want to make more profits through the research creating demand for the stem cells. Today, the stem cell research has gained a lot of attention making it necessary to address the disclosure of information regarding the treatment (Zarzeczny, 2010). According to many scholars including Murdoch et al. (2010, p. 21) believe that the disclosure must fulfil certain conditions. Firstly, the disclosure and discussion of the potential for physical and psychological harm and cost of the procedure. Secondly, the patients must be made aware of the objective scientific proof of the danger or gain of the intervention. Lastly, there has to be a disclosure of proof of ethical misconduct practices. Arguments in the research: Slippery slope The antagonists of stem cell experimentation use the slippery slope argument to defend their stand by doubting the morality of the stem cell research. According to them, there is no reasonable cut-off detail can be used to specify the point at which destroying a foetus is right when we allow the formulation and destruction of the human embryo during the study. They also claim that the destruction of any human entity such as a zygote is similar to abortion making stem cell research a dangerous act since it is associated with it (Dresser, 2010). Therefore, societies should find the ground that defines the various processes involved in the stem cell research. Ethical steps and components in research design The application of cell products for treatment is regulated by the various legislative bodies of the different countries to ensure that the patients are protected. However, the ISSCR has stipulated certain guidelines that must be followed by parties willing to engage in the stem cell research business. These guidelines are grouped into the various categories discussed in this section. 1. Sourcing of the Stem Cell Material i. Donor consent Before carrying out the research, it is critical that the researchers ensure the subjects and the decision-makers of the surrogate understand the cell-specific features of their partnership in the research. Furthermore, they should ensure that they adhere to the laboratory practice and regulatory guidelines despite the fact that the fundamental acquisition of tissue from individual donors may not need good manufacturing practice (GMP) certification. ii. Donor screening The donor must be tested for communicable infections and other risk determinants. The procedures are similar to that of blood transfer because it ensures that the receivers do not get diseases or infections from the donors thus protecting them as well. 2. The Manufacture of the Stem Cell Material i. Quality control in manufacture It is important that quality control is observed to ensure the standard operating procedures are followed to make sure that the condition of the reagents and appropriateness of protocols is achieved. Most importantly, the people involved in the research have to know that the various cells require different conditions in their production. For instance, cells distinct from those in vivo need a Lot of attention when keeping them in culture. ii. Processing and manufacture oversight Researchers must ensure that they give appropriate attention to the process depending on the danger produced by the use of the cells, their origin and purpose, nature of the treatment, and the number of the study citizens that will be endangered to them. For instance, the pluripotent cells tend to have an extra risk and for this reason, they should be given additional attention. iii. Components in culture or preservation of cells Researchers should ensure that they take the required precaution when dealing with animal parts. The reason for this is because elements that originate from animals tend to carry more risks such as the transfer of pathogens and other unwanted biological materials. This means that they should ensure they replace the components with the relevant materials whenever they extract them. iv. Release criteria The release of cells may or may not lead to the risk of acquiring risks from the culture abnormalities. For this reason, the criteria for release must ensure that the dangers of getting defects related to the culture are minimized significantly. v. Repositories and Databases It is critical that the storage mediums are created and designed to suit the needs of the stem cell products because of their urgency vary from the source and the use. For instance, some may need to be used immediately and with minimum manipulation while others may be stored for future uses. Recommendations According to this research, adult stem cell research is better than the embryonic stem cell research. The reason for his is because the embryonic stem cell research has many controversial issues associated with it and it also has attention from many institutions and people including religious people, politicians, researchers, and lawyers. It also has some ethical concerns regarding the right to life because different people have varying beliefs on the beginning of life. Therefore, stem cell research should focus on adult stem cell research because it is more advantageous and has fewer negative receptions as the embryonic stem cell research. Besides, it is more advantageous Conclusion The development of microcephaly in the unborn babies of a pregnant woman who have become infected with the Zika virus can be reduced significantly by using technologies such as the use cellular treatment options. Today, scientist are using stem cells that have two primary sources, adult stem cell, and embryonic stem cells, to reduce the development of microcephaly. Although company ABC established that the embryonic stem cells were better in the prevention of microcephaly, this research revealed that adult stem cells are the better option. The reason for this is that the embryonic stem cell research had several varying opinions from various people such as including religious people, politicians, researchers, and lawyers that significantly influence the society. It is important that the scientist remains on the right side and also maintain ethical practices for them always to have trust from their clients as well as their financiers. Besides, the paper covered the guidelines necessary to ensure that the researchers remain ethical in their activities. These steps include ensuring that source of the stem cells consults the donors and screens them to prevent any cases of diseases and other infections. In the manufacturing process, the researchers have to ensure that quality control, processing and manufacture oversight, preservation of cells, release criteria, and databases. The research support the application of adult stem cell research because it is advantageous in the prevention of microcephaly and does not have many oppositions like the embryonic stem cell research. References Al - Hussaini, M. and Kateb, L. (2012). Are Muslims into stem cell research ? Review of current available literature. 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