New promise for stem cells

In a breakthrough one researcher compared to “turning lead

into gold,” scientists in the U.S. and Japan this week said they had turned mature human cells into stem cells. The scientists said they were able to reprogram ordinary skin cells into stem cells simply by adding four genes. Up to now, stem cells could be obtained only by extracting them from human embryos. The new technique could end the acrimonious debate between science and religious conservatives, who contend it’s immoral to create or kill human embryos for scientific research. President Bush has banned the use of federal funds for stem-cell research that uses human embryos. “This is going to be the way forward,” said Sir Martin Evans, a British stem-cell pioneer who won this year’s Nobel Prize in medicine. “We’ve all been waiting for this.”

Stem cells are, in effect, a biological blank check, and can be coaxed into becoming nerve cells, heart cells, pancreas cells—any kind of cell in the body. Scientists believe that stem cells could produce cures or powerful new treatments for a wide range of dread diseases, including diabetes, Parkinson’s, and Alzheimer’s, as well as spinal cord injuries. The new technique is especially promising because stem cells obtained from a patient’s own tissues wouldn’t be rejected by the immune system.

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This discovery is a “powerful vindication” of Bush’s principled opposition to embryonic research, said National Review Online in an editorial. Defying great political pressure, the president insisted that it was possible to produce stem cells “without violating human life or dignity.” This scientific triumph shows that “the answer to unethical science is not to give up on ethics but rather to pursue ethical science.”

It’s much too soon to declare the debate over, said Ricardo Alonso-Zaldivar in the Los Angeles Times. “Scientists say research on both types of cells is closely related and is needed to inspire and cross-check each other.” Indeed, until scientists prove that reprogrammed cells can “repair a damaged nerve, spinal cord, or heart, all avenues of research must be funded and pursued,” said bioethicist Arthur Caplan in MSNBC.com. And if this new technique does eliminate the need to use human embryos, a whole new set of ethical questions will arise. Someday soon, we may have to ask, “Is it right to repair ourselves if it means that we live much longer than any human being has ever lived?”