Medical Experimentations - Essay Example

In looking first at genetic engineering, the very basis for such research is human DNA. Obviously this alludes to the absolute necessity of human testing on at least some level. Similarly, testing the altered genetic material which has been modified in the interest of treating diseases and illnesses, subjects possessing homologous DNA is a necessity. This results in a bit of a slippery slope which creates a demand for rigid regulations governing clinical trials involving genetically based procedures pending FDA and medical review board approval.

In other words, altered DNA in a cell which possesses 23 pairs of chromosomes can only be implanted into an organism possessing the same number of homologous chromosomes in order to be viable. Science differentiates species in part by their number of chromosomes as well as the number of chromosomes each posses within homologous sets. Research ethics continues to be extremely controversial surrounding stem cell research. Stem cell research however, strives to result in the implantation of stem cells into diseased or severely injured individuals.

The reason stem cells are so important scientifically and medically is that they are capable of becoming any type of cell. Stem cells of course originate from fetuses who are still undergoing the processes of cell differentiation. When stem cells are exposed to different chemicals in the body, they essentially are “assigned” to become a specific type of cell depending on the chemical they are exposed to, “ Some of the most serious medical conditions, such as cancer and birth defects, are caused by problems that occur somewhere in this process.

A better understanding of normal cell development will allow us to understand and perhaps correct the errors that cause these medical conditions”(Department of Health and Human Services, 2007). The ethical issue comes in to play when the question of where the stem cells originated from surfaces. Stem