Stem cells and genetic engineering

Dylan Rebbeor

11-28-12

Objectives

• Should stem cells and genetic engineering be more or less restricted?

• What are stem cells and what is genetic engineering?- bioengineering

• Why are they so debated?

• What laws are in place?

• What are some examples of each?

What are stem cells?

• They are cells with the ability to turn into other types of cells

• First began in 1981

• Used as a repair system

• Multi-potent and pluripotent

• Embryonic and induced

Pluripotent vs. Multipotent

• Pluripotent• Only occurs naturally

during pregnancy (blastula/ fetus)

• Many uses

• Multipotent• Naturally occurs in

the body (bone marrow- red blood cells)

• Used as repair system

• Only a few uses

Embryonic vs. Induced

• Embryonic• Comes from the

zygote (fetus)• Pluripotent

• Induced• Normal cells forced to

become pluripotent stem cells

Nobel Prize Winners 2012

• Award for physiology or medicine

• Sir John B. Gurdon and Shinya Yamanaka

• Discovered a way to induce mature skin cells to become pluripotent stem cells

Arguments

• For• Can induce cells to

become stem cells• Very useful-used in

cell based treatments• (transplants etc)

• Against• Embryonic stem cells• Against religion• Why should

government have to pay?

Laws

• President Bush issued an executive order (EO) that banned the funding of any embryonic stem cell research

• President Obama repealed this with another EO in 2009

• Grants by NIH (National Institutes of Health)

Genetic engineering

• Began in 1989

• The selection of certain desired traits- genetically modified organism

• Selective breeding- selection of desired traits through breeding over an extended period of time

• China’s one-child policy

• Unknown effects and designer children

One-child policy

• Only allowed one child per family

• Males considered more desirable in their culture

• Close to 100,000,000 males more than females

Arguments

• For• Already happening

and been done• Production of a better

product

• Against• Unknown

consequences• Religion

Designer Children

• Made by genetic engineering

• People could choose how they want their kid to be (hair, eyes, smart, tall)

• Not used

• Genetic engineering mainly in agriculture and pharmaceuticals

Corn

• Lots of genetic engineering involved

• Resistant to herbicide

• More drought resistant

• More corn produced

• Bigger corn produced

Laws

• FDA- as long as it isn’t harmful and nothing can be proven that it is harmful it is allowed

Organizations

• Private organizations- provide funds, fight for research grants, aid labs involved with research

• International Stem Cell Forum

• Union of Concerned Scientists

Genetic engineering vs. Selective Breeding

• Genetic engineering• Replacement of

genes through bioengineering

• Selective breeding• Selection of desired

traits through breeding over an extended period of time

• Is it ok to use a human cell line from an aborted fetus to make a drug to save someone’s life?

• What about making someone smarter or better-looking?

• Is it ok to create an embryo with the intent to use it for stem cells?

• What if the embryos were being disposed of anyway?

• Read scientific objections• Expand final question, add on include

other questions if the fetus will be destroyed any way is it still ok to use it/? Is it ok to create an embryo in order to use it? What about making people smarter or better looking?

• Stop fidgeting with hands add more pictures/ examples