Biomedical Engineering Reference
In-Depth Information
This has ultimately resulted in the further hypothesis that once the
process of
in vitro
cell growth could be effectively controlled for
human embryonic stem cells, then it should be possible to grow
replacement tissues for use in clinical medicine. Widespread media
coverage since 1998 has made such clinical possibilities seem like a
highly desirable outcome. This emphasis on the clinical possibilities
of human embryonic stem cell science have been a key focus for
patient groups and scientists interested in overcoming community
and political resistance to the use of human embryos in research.
The incentive for clinical development based on human embryonic
stem cells is a result of the potential for regenerative therapies to do one
or more of the following: improve current treatment regimes; reduce the
need for ongoing medical interventions; replace new for old or diseased
body parts; prolong the functioning of existing body parts; repair
damage sustained in accidents or through overuse; and reduce health
care costs to individuals, communities and governments. Examples of
these kinds of outcomes include: providing insulin-dependent diabetics
with new insulin-producing islet cells; developing means of more
organic wound repair than currently exist; creating whole organs for
replacement when existing ones become diseased; and the production
of new neurons for people with Alzheimer's or Parkinson's disease.
The main barriers to facing the development of human embryonic
stem cells into new clinical treatments are primarily based on ethical
objections to the use of human embryos in scientific research. There
are also still a number of ongoing technical issues to do with controlling
cell growth and the measurability of long-term outcomes of human
embryo derived stem cell products in patients. Still further barriers
have to do with rules and regulations around the patenting of human
embryonic stem cell related products. Rules and regulations governing
the conduct of research using human embryos are also considered by
some researchers as an additional obstruction to the successful pursuit
of hESC-derived clinical applications, although other researchers
argue that such regulatory scrutiny provides legitimation for what
might otherwise be regarded as highly controversial.
The main step now for the development of hESC clinical
applications is to start trialling products in humans. The hESC-focused
biotechnology company Geron was the first to enter the human
