Embryo Stem Cell Research: Ten Years of Controversy by John A. Roberston
This source is an article concerned with the many controversies surrounding embryo stem cell research. There are seven main topics mentioned: why ESCs are controversial, legal and constitutional issues, funding issues, regulatory issues, translation into the clinic, future issues, and ethical conflict and the pace of innovation. The author seems to support embryo stem cell research because he is stating all of the obstacles that this scientific development has to go through to succeed. He states that “law and policy affect scientific innovation.” Over the last ten years, funding issues has been the main problem. There are also ethical issues because some people consider embryo’s human life and doing stem cell research is destroying life.
Ethics and Embryonic Stem Cell Research: Altered Nuclear Transfer as a Way Forward by William B. Hurlbut
This source is an article that is concerned with an alternative to embryonic stem cell research. The author mentions that embryos are early forms of human life and should not be experimented upon. Hurlbut also mentions the Dickey Amendment which “effectively prohibits the use of federal funds to support any research that endangers or destroys human embryos.” His alternative is altered nuclear transfer which “employs the technique of somatic cell nuclear transfer, but the somatic cell nucleus or cytoplasm (or both) are first altered before the somatic cell nucleus is transferred into the oocyte.” This method produces ‘biological artifacts’ “capable of forming pluripotent stem cells without the creation and destruction of human embryos.” Hurlbut believes this method would satisfy both scientist and people’s moral and ethical values.
Debating restrictions on embryonic stem cell research by Colleen McClain
This source is an online experimental study. College students were asked to discuss the new restrictions on human embryonic stem cell research. Their emotions were evaluated because this is such a controversial topic. Opinions varied; some people thought that stem cell research is a good thing and would help save lives while others thought of it as murder. There isn’t really an outcome to the experiment because there is no right or wrong answer, just opinions. The political controversy was also discussed in the beginning of the article. Obama released restrictions on research after Bush had limited federal finances on embryonic stem cell research.
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