(UEFS 2013 - Meio do ano)For the first time, scien

(UEFS 2013 - Meio do ano)

For the first time, scientists have created human embryos that are genetic copies of living people and used them to make stem cells — a feat that paves the way for treating a range of diseases with personalized body 5 tissues but also ignites fears of human cloning. If replicated in other labs, the methods detailed Wednesday in the journal Cell would allow researchers to fashion human embryonic stem cells that are custom-made for patients with Alzheimer’s disease, diabetes and other 10 health problems.

Theoretically capable of reproducing themselves indefinitely, these stem cells could be used to grow replacements for a wide variety of diseased cells — those of the blood, skin, heart, brain, muscles, nerves and 15 more — that would not risk rejection by the patient’s immune system.

The report also raises the specter that, with a high-quality donor egg, a bit of skin, some careful tending in a lab and the womb of a willing surrogate, humans 20 have cracked the biological secret to reproducing themselves. That is an objective American scientists have squarely renounced as unethical and scientifically irresponsible. At the same time, most acknowledge that such “reproductive cloning” will one day prove too 25 tempting to resist.

In the hope that other researchers will validate and extend their results, the scientists at Oregon Health & Science University provided an exceptionally detailed account of their techniques. For anyone with a 30 well-equipped fertility lab, the comprehensive guide could also be a useful handbook for cloning a baby. The success of the experiments rekindled debate among bioethicists, who have long anticipated that human cloning would become a reality.
HEALY, Melissa. Disponível em: . Acesso em: 13 maio 2013.

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