JUSTIN WHITING
Staff Writer
Science and ethics continue to wage their battles.
The board of California’s new stem-cell institute began shaping its agenda earlier this month. The California Stem Cell Research and Cures Act, which passed on November’s ballot, established the California Institute for Regenerative Medicine and a $3-billion bond for research. Mixed feelings about stem-cell research circulate among many Pepperdine students.
“I am morally against stem-cell research if it means harvesting aborted fetuses, but if research can be done without actually killing a baby then I support it,” said junior Todd Chaney.
The bond, Proposition 71, will fund stem-cell research focusing on the development of life-saving regenerative medical treatments and cures. It will be repaid over 30 years and cost the state about $6 billion after interest. Most of the bond money would go to California state-college campuses, hospitals, research facilities and medical schools. This act is in opposition to the partial ban on federal funding for stem-cell research.
Supporters of the act argued that it would help the economy, despite its large price tag, by creating new jobs and eventually by severely lowering the long-term health-care burden. Although the act ensures the constitutionality to conduct stem-cell research, it upholds the ban on human-reproductive cloning research.
The new law has stirred controversy throughout the Pepperdine campus as it infringes on some religious and political beliefs; others believe it has great potential to help. Stem cells have the potential to cure many fatal and debilitating diseases, but this requires an unborn embryo to produce the cells. The common misconception is that the embryo has to be fertilized for there to be stem cells. This research focuses on stem cells in adults and in unfertilized eggs.
Many students take firm stances on either side while others say they simply do not know enough about the subject to formulate an opinion.
“I believe that any route through which the quality of life may be improved for the entire human race, not just a select class, should be explored,” said junior Garret Kocher.
For some it was less of a moral issue and more about politics and technological advancement.
“Personally, I am for stem-cell research, because we need to make sacrifices to advance technology,” said senior Steve Swartzlander. “As a leading nation in the world in research we need to continue to push ahead in all fields to remain the most advanced society. The money is put to good use investing in our futures.”
This issue has not only plagued students, but faculty as well. Dr. Stuart Love, professor of Religion, found stem-cell research to be an interesting and complex topic.
“I believe in the sanctity of life and am against abortion, but I believe that if stem-cell research can promote life and the overall good, then it is important to examine it,” Love said. “This issue is very complicated and creates some ethical tension, but I feel it is important to see what these cells can do.”
While many students have firm opinions on stem-cell research, others have trouble deciding. Junior Calvin Larsen said he was morally split on the issue. He said he saw both sides clearly, but he could not make a decision of whether he considered it ethical.
Stem cells are the initial building blocks for more complicated cells. Stem cells are important because they are unspecialized cells. Under certain conditions, these cells can be induced to become cells with special functions. A stem cell, in the right conditions, could theoretically become a cell that functions in the heart and replace cells destroyed by illness.
For stem cell-based therapies to be developed, scientists have to determine how stem cells stay unspecified and self-renewing for so many years and identify the signals that cause stem cells to become specific cells.
The stem cells that are researched do not all come from embryos. There are two types of stem cells: embryonic and adult. The embryonic stem cells require an embryo to be destroyed to examine the core cells but the embryo does not need to be fertilized.
The adult stem cells are undifferentiated cells found in grown tissue or organs. The primary role of these cells is to repair damaged tissue and replace destroyed cells. The research in adult stem cells is still in preliminary stages, and it has not yet been established whether these cells could be transplanted to repair damaged tissue in other people.
01-20-2005