Damaged neurons in Parkinson’s or Huntington’s patients could possibly be replaced by neurons that come from stem cells (Schurch, B., MD et al., 2003). In a study by Mochizuki et al. studies have shown that transplanting embryonic stem cells into brains of rats with Parkinson’s improved the rat’s neural functions. These rats began making dopaminergic neurons that were from the human embryonic stem cells. Then, they exhibited complete regeneration of behavior and their motor function improved. There were similar studies shown in monkeys with Parkinson’s …show more content…
There is a possibility to solve this problem by inserting a virus into the stem cells that kills the tumor, but this could have deadly side effects. In both the differentiated and undifferentiated stages, the human embryonic stem cells have low levels of leukocyte antigen class one molecules. This could cause rejections of the organs after transplantation. Researchers discovered that using short-term immune-dampening treatment helps the stem cells survive and reduce the risk of rejection. Although impressive outcomes are expressed in this article, there are concerns of unreliable results, short-term results, and poorly controlled experiments. There is a push for highly-regulated experiments, preforming them in clinical settings, and recording reliable data (Mochizuki et al., 2013). There are advantages and disadvantages to stem cell engineering. It has ethical questions concerning selling eggs, human cloning, and disposing of the genetically modified fetus. Because this treatment will be extremely expensive, most people will not be able to afford it. Not only could stem cell research could save many lives in the future by creating organs, it could change the lives of people with movement