Embryos For Stem Cell Research Research Articles

An Empirical Study on the Legal Issues Surrounding Embryonic Stem Cell Research in India

The discovery of stem cells particularly embryonic stem cells with its possible clinical application has generated great curiosity amongst medical professionals and general public. Embryonic stem cell research has become a challenging issue for biomedical scientists, policy makers and regulatory bodies. The key controversial issue is the determination of moral and legal status of the embryo as embryo stem cell research involves retrieving embryonic tissue from spare embryos leading to their destruction. This embryo that has the full capacity to develop into a human being is sacrificed for the benefit of others. Global regulations monitoring stem cell research are also troubled with similar ethical and moral issues associated with it. The main source of embryonic tissue is the spare or supernumerary embryos created during infertility treatment by artificial reproductive techniques (ART). Sadly, in absence of regulatory provisions to govern them, the field of ART is open for all forms of medical malpraxis bearing direct implications on embryonic stem cell research. This article is an attempt to seek clarity on the concept of embryonic stem cell research and contentious issues associated with it. This is a non-doctrinal study. The researcher has depended on both primary and secondary data. Random sampling has been used to collect the primary data which has been analysed using Frequencies, Chi-Square test and Crosstab method. Secondary data like books, websites, journals and case laws have also been referred to provide a comprehensive and holistic approach towards the study.

Attitudes Towards the Donation of Human Embryos for Stem Cell Research Among Chinese IVF Patients and Students

Bioethical debates on the use of human embryos and oocytes for stem cell research have often been criticized for the lack of empirical insights into the perceptions and experiences of the women and couples who are asked to donate these tissues in the IVF clinic. Empirical studies that have investigated the attitudes of IVF patients and citizens on the (potential) donation of their embryos and oocytes have been scarce and have focused predominantly on the situation in Europe and Australia. This article examines the viewpoints on the donation of embryos for stem cell research among IVF patients and students in China. Research into the perceptions of patients is based on in-depth interviews with IVF patients and IVF clinicians. Research into the attitudes of students is based on a quantitative survey study (n=427). The empirical findings in this paper indicate that perceptions of the donation of human embryos for stem cell research in China are far more diverse and complex than has commonly been suggested. Claims that ethical concerns regarding the donation and use of embryos and oocytes for stem cell research are typical for Western societies but absent in China cannot be upheld. The article shows that research into the situated perceptions and cultural specificities of human tissue donation can play a crucial role in the deconstruction of politicized bioethical argumentation and the (often ill-informed) assumptions about “others” that underlie socio-ethical debates on the moral dilemmas of technology developments in the life sciences.

Using Surplus Embryos and Research Embryos in Stem Cell Research: Ethical Viewpoints of Buddhist, Hindu and Catholic Leaders in Malaysia on the Permissibility of Research.

The sources of embryos for Embryonic Stem Cell Research (ESCR) include surplus embryos from infertility treatments, and research embryos which are created solely for an ESCR purpose. The latter raises more ethical concerns. In a multi-religious country like Malaysia, ethical discussions on the permissibility of ESCR with regard to the use surplus and research embryos are diversified. Malaysia has formulated guidelines influenced by the national fatwa ruling which allows the use of surplus embryos in ESCR. Input from other main religions is yet to be documented. In light of this, this study addresses (i) the ethical viewpoints of Buddhist, Hindu and Catholic leaders on the permissibility of using surplus and research embryos; and (ii) the moral standpoints of religious leaders towards attaining a consensus on the practice of ESCR in Malaysia. Responses from the religious leaders were obtained via semi-structured, face-to-face interviews. The findings show that generally the Buddhist and Hindu leaders approve the use of surplus embryos. Their responses on the creation of research embryos for ESCR are varied. Meanwhile, the Catholic leaders distinctively objected to ESCR regardless of the embryo sources, referring to it as the destruction of life. Taking into account the diverse views, this study explores the response of the religious leaders for a general consensus wherever possible. The ethical discourse surrounding ESCR in a multi-religious setting offers new perspective, which needs to be explored in a broader global community.

Human dignity in a comparative perspective: embryo protection regimes in Italy and Germany

ABSTRACTIn this article, we explore the extent to which a dignitarian ethic can effectively shape regulatory policy in the area of biomedical practices which involve the use of human embryos. Drawing on the comparison of how Italy and Germany deliberated the ways in which assisted reproductive technologies and human embryo stem cell research should be governed, we explore the conditions that affect the potential of a dignitarian ethic to effectively shape countries’ policy on these issues. We argue that two factors substantially affect its success. The first factor is the position of dignitarianism in the country’s bioethical landscape, that is, whether it is the dominant bioethical perspective or competes with other perspectives for regulatory relevance. The second factor is the willingness of the regulators to strike compromises with their opponents if dignitarianism is not the main bioethical perspective and competes with other ethical perspectives for regulatory relevance. Building on our analysis, we conclude by drawing three general patterns of the relationships between countries’ bioethical configurations and their regulatory policy.

Overview of Embryonic Stem Cell Research

The purpose of this paper is to debate whether or not the embryonic stem cell research should be permitted, or even encouraged. I will argue that we have a moral duty to encourage the advance of scientific knowledge (by learning how the embryo stem cell works) and to allow developments in medicine (by using therapies resulted from embryo stem cell research), yet understanding the risks that such research and knowledge brings. Therefore, I will discuss a few medical and procedural aspects regarding embryonal stem cells, I will briefly present several perspectives upon embryo moral status and also upon the most important slippery slope dangers concerning embryonic stem cell research. All of these aspects will be approached focusing not only on potential benefits, but mainly on the correct understanding and appropriate calculation of the risks involved.

Updating the Argument for Permitting and Federally Funding Stem Cell Research

Stem cell technology has advanced in recent years, raising the question of whether we might be able to bypass those concerns which traditionally have troubled opponents of stem cell research the most. In this light, we examine the major new techniques for the creation of human stem cell lines (HSCs), including induced pluripotent stem cells (iPS) and somatic cell nuclear transfer (SCNT) in order to assess whether either of these two alternatives are practically or ethically more advantageous than a reliance on the use of embryos procured in excess from in vitro fertilization (IVF). We conclude that these more recent techniques provide neither functionally comparable alternatives nor a straightforward escape from the moral difficulties involved in embryonic destruction. We then address anew the question of permissibility of stem cell research in comparison with two other biomedical ethical issues, namely, abortion and euthanasia. Finally, availing ourselves of the doctrine of double effect, we advocate for a permissive policy regarding the use of embryos in stem cell research and additionally provide fresh grounds for allocating federal funds for this research within a pluralistic society.

The evolution of legislation in the field of Medically Assisted Reproduction and embryo stem cell research in European union members.

Medically Assisted Reproduction (MAR), involving in vitro fertilisation (IVF), and research on embryos have created expectation to many people affected by infertility; at the same time it has generated a surplus of laws and ethical and social debates. Undoubtedly, MAR represents a rather new medical field and constant developments in medicine and new opportunities continue to defy the attempt to respond to those questions. In this paper, the authors reviewed the current legislation in the 28 EU member states trying to evaluate the different legislation paths adopted over the last 15 years and highlighting those EU countries with no specific legislation in place and MAR is covered by a general health Law and those countries in which there are no laws in this field but only “guidelines.” The second aim of this work has been to compare MAR legislation and embryo research in EU countries, which derive from different origins ranging from an extremely prohibitive approach versus a liberal one, going through a cautious regulatory approach.

Donating embryos for human embryonic stem cell (hESC) research: a committee opinion

hESC research is an ethically acceptable use of human embryos that are in excess of those needed to meet the fertility goals of patients. The ethical basis for this view and issues to be considered during the informed consent process for the donation of embryos are developed in this document. This report replaces the Committee's 2009 report, "Donating spare embryos for stem cell research" (Fertil Steril 2009;91:667-70).

The challenges of stem cell research in Nigeria

Many patients and their families, have great expectations that Stem cell therapy could be the cure for a host of devastating diseases such as Parkinson's disease, Alzheimer's dementia, diabetes, multiple sclerosis, burns, etc. As stem cell research gains ground in Nigeria, it is appropriate to explore the issues surrounding the use of human embryos for stem cell research and its implication from a nursing perspective. In this paper the socio-political implications of the use of embryonic stem cell research was addressed. The nursing, medical and legal literature (both print and electronic) related to Stem cell research and therapy were evaluated and the main ethical issues raised by the destruction of human embryos were examined. There must be a public discussion/debate on the benefits including its cost implication. Nigerians must evaluate the appropriateness of stem cell technologies within their own national contexts and prioritize which applications are the most promising for improving their health.

Strategy for the creation of clinical grade hESC line banks that HLA‐match a target population

Here, we describe a pre-derivation embryo haplotyping strategy that we developed in order to maximize the efficiency and minimize the costs of establishing banks of clinical grade hESC lines in which human leukocyte antigen (HLA) haplotypes match a significant proportion of the population. Using whole genome amplification followed by medium resolution HLA typing using PCR amplification with sequence-specific primers (PCR-SSP), we have typed the parents, embryos and hESC lines from three families as well as our eight clinical grade hESC lines and shown that this technical approach is rapid, reliable and accurate. By employing this pre-derivation strategy where, based on HLA match, embryos are selected for a GMP route on day 3–4 of development, we would have drastically reduced our cGMP laboratory running costs.

Human Embryonic Stem Cell (hESC) and Human Embryo Research

Human embryonic stem cell research has emerged as an important platform for the understanding and treatment of pediatric diseases. From its inception, however, it has raised ethical concerns based not on the use of stem cells themselves but on objections to the source of the cells--specifically, the destruction of preimplantation human embryos. Despite differences in public opinion on this issue, a large majority of the public supports continued research using embryonic stem cells. Given the possible substantial benefit of stem cell research on child health and development, the American Academy of Pediatrics believes that funding and oversight for human embryo and embryonic stem cell research should continue.

‘Reflex regulation’: An anatomy of promissory science governance

With reference to two comparative UK biotechnology case studies, spanning recent decades, this article outlines the main features of what might usefully be expressed as ‘reflex regulation’. This includes a set of reactive institutional habits, routines and reflexes that continue to characterise the regulation of the biosciences in the UK. Methodologically, the article draws on long-term social scientific engagement with policy-making in the field of xenotransplantation in the 1990s and, a decade later, the politics of trans-species embryo stem cell research. Our focus in this article is on questions of time and timing in the temporal relationships between developments in bioscience, policy-making and wider political deliberation. Both case studies exhibit a range of persistent policy-making features, specifically a range of temporal reflexes including: the largely uncritical susceptibility of policy communities to promissory scientific claims by key entrepreneurial scientific stakeholders; a perceived policy need to react rapidly to often unchallenged claims about imminent benefit; a tendency towards the construction of regulatory measures that are often poorly adapted to long-term socio-technical processes; and an institutionalised historical amnesia whereby policy communities fail to critically reflect on the periodicities of hype and disappointment. These features of science governance, we argue, continue to inhibit and narrow the opportunity for a potentially more ‘reflexive’ as opposed to ‘reflex’ science policy.

The fate of stored human embryos 5 years after approval of embryo stem cell research in Brazil

The fate of stored human embryos 5 years after approval of embryo stem cell research in Brazil

Barriers to conducting clinical research in reproductive medicine: Latin America

Societies in Latin America are not scientifically driven and therefore, the allocation of human and economic resources to research is meager, as a reflection of this as well as other cultural and economic realities.

Embryo futures and stem cell research: the management of informed uncertainty

In the social worlds of assisted conception and stem cell science, uncertainties proliferate and particular framings of the future may be highly strategic. In this article we explore meanings and articulations of the future using data from our study of ethical and social issues implicated by the donation of embryos to human embryonic stem cell research in three linked assisted conception units and stem cell laboratories in the UK. Framings of the future in this field inform the professional management of uncertainty and we explore some of the tensions this involves in practice. The bifurcation of choices for donating embryos into accepting informed uncertainty or not donating at all was identified through the research process of interviews and ethics discussion groups. Professional staff accounts in this study contained moral orientations that valued ideas such as engendering patient trust by offering full information, the sense of collective ownership of the National Heath Service and publicly funded science and ideas for how donors might be able to give restricted consent as a third option.

Die menswaardigheid van die menslike embrio: die debat tot dusver

The human dignity of the human embryo: the debate thus farThis article examines some recent arguments regarding the ethics of stem cell research as they are discussed in the various essays in the publication of Gruen et al. (2007), “Stem cell research: the ethical issues”. Regarding the use of human embryos in stem cell research, these essays discuss among other things the potential of the human embryo, the moral status (human dignity) of the human embryo, the creation of chimeras, the sale of ocytes and other ethical issues in modern bioethics. Eventually the article draws attention to the main ethical problems at stake to be dealt with by Christian ethics using a deontological ethical theory. Christian ethics should focus on these problems in the on-going ethical debate regarding stem cell research.

Line-Drawing, Embryonic Stem Cell Research, and the Dickey-Wicker Amendment

Human embryonic stem cell (hesc) research is the culmination of a multi-step process: creating an embryo through in vitro fertilization (IVF), deciding whether to donate or destroy embryos left over from that process, harvesting stem cells from embryos donated for research, and finally doing research with the stem cells themselves. Each of these points presents different ethical issues. For those for whom human embryos command relatively little moral weight, this entire process is acceptable. But for those who consider embryos the moral equivalent of persons ,and also for those for whom embryos, while not equal in importance to born humans, do carry a great deal of weight, everything depends on when in that process one comes to a moral crossroads. I argue that the line drawn by NIH in its response to the Dickey-Wicker Amendment, is not morally defensible. I also argue that for those who wish to stop or at least to decrease the destruction of embryos for stem cell research, the moral crossroads occurs much earlier: with the creation of those embryos in the fertility clinics.

The Use of Eggs and Embryos in Stem Cell Research

Stem cell research has enormous potential to advance knowledge about many diseases but poses critical ethical issues. Many countries and U.S. states have developed policies concerning this area that over time will surely evolve, yet certain underlying ethical principles and tensions will no doubt continue to remain key. Overall, the basic ethical principles of autonomy, beneficence, nonmalfeasance, and justice are crucial but have been viewed, interpreted, and applied differently by policy makers and others. Controversies remain concerning what degree of respect eggs and embryos should receive; whether egg donors should be compensated, and if so, how much; what exactly to include in informed consent; and how to ensure appropriate oversight by institutional review boards and embryonic stem cell research oversight committees. This article addresses these areas and ways of approaching them, to adhere to important ethical principles, while helping to advance research that has the potential to help innumerable patients.

President's Power to Frame Stem Cell Views Limited

A top-down communication model failed in an examination of news coverage and public opinion about the use of human embryos for stem cell research. The study covered three years leading to Bush's veto of a bill to remove research restrictions.

Old and New Ethics in the Stem Cell Debate

The debate about embryonic stem cell research is a conflict not between "religion" and "science," but between two ethical approaches to the dignity of human beings. The newer, more pragmatic ethic is not necessarily more conducive to rapid medical progress as is often assumed.