Scientists Make Breakthroughs in Stem Cell Research

There have been some significant breakthroughs in stem cell research over the past few months. New research may have found ways to battle the ethical debates blocking stem cell research in the United States. Two studies present innovative ways to take embryonic stem cell lines without destroying viable embryos. Although the findings were considered promising, they are still preliminary.

Embryonic stem cells, which are derived from early embryos before they implant in the uterus, have the potential to develop into any type of cell in the body. The hope is that these cells may one day provide treatments or cures for diseases such as diabetes, liver failure, spinal injury, stroke, Alzheimer`s disease and heart disease.

`Approaches to get embryonic stem cells from methods in which the embryo is not harmed are clearly very important and a significant advance,` said Paul Sanberg, director of the Center for Aging and Brain Repair at the University of South Florida College of Medicine in Tampa.

`These are still early studies that have to be shown in human cells, but they are going in an interesting direction,` Sanberg said. `We still need to do research in embryonic stem cells in order to understand basic biology, and having embryonic stem cells in which we don`t have ethnical issues associated with it is important, especially in the United States.`

                                 

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