Stem Cells and our future

Obama opens a new path to funding research on stem cells with federal funds, but what are the implications of this new policy?

Check the basics first: What are Stem Cells?

According to the National Institutes of Health resource for stem cell research defines the Stem Cells as follows: “They are the kind of cells that have the remarkable potential to develop into many different cell types in the body. Serving as a sort of repair system for the body, they can theoretically divide without limit to replenish other cells as long as the person or animal is still alive. When a stem cell divides, each new cell has the potential to either remain a stem cell or become another type of cell with a more specialized function, such as a muscle cell, a red blood cell, or a brain cell.”


That means we are going to be able to repair the damaged cells from our bodies, an example?, recently scientist have been doing some research to cure diabetes, they put stem cells into the pancreas and they recover the capacity of the pancreas to produce insulin, Great Isn’t it? .

Another one?, we can create Synthetic Blood, (wow!), Because of this, they did not need blood donors (great, they can save a lot of money with the biscuits and juice they give you in order to attract people to donate blood), they will be producing O Negative Blood which is the universal donor “group whose blood can be transfused into anyone without fear of tissue rejection.



This blood group is relatively rare; applicable to about 7 per cent of the population, but it could be produced in unlimited quantities from embryonic stem cells because of their ability to multiply indefinitely in the laboratory.” Says the independent; A UK journal; this blood will be free of virus such as HIV and Hepatitis.
This new path in science will bring us a lot of ethical issues such as: there will be people not very happy with the idea of destroy embryos to create Stem Cells, (By the way according to Carl Sagan the characteristic that made us unique as a species is the use of our brain, our conscience, I will leave the ironic comments for later!, and you can see this when the brain starts to present electrical activity, and that happens in the sixth month of pregnancy, according to his definition, we can only call human an embryo after the sixth month!, but still we all know that in the first month still the only choice of this embryo is to become a human being, it is just a matter of time to develop his brain!), in theory one embryo can meet all the needs of blood of one nation.

Another challenge that this technology will bring: will not be available to all people, hence the first filter will be… Money; That means this will be available first in the developed countries, which will increase his life expectancy and it will increase the pressure for dramatic changes in their pensions systems, health systems, and maybe work regulations, This will be a form of an accelerated biological Darwinism?, filtered by money?, where will leave this the underdeveloped countries.?.

The accelerated pace of changes in today’s world would leave us with a huge differences with the quality of live in the developed and underdeveloped world, you can add this to the list: differences in access to energy (U.S.A. spent the 25% of all the energy produced in the world with only the 5% of the population living in this country), also the digital Gap (where the vast majority of web pages and digital services where focused in U.S.A.), now you can add this new biological technology.

Now I can say confidently that the technology will shape tomorrow’s world, the question remaining is in what way?

See it was not a small change after all!, the research on stem cells with federal funds.