4.1.2.3 stem cells

• What is a stem cell?

  An undifferentiated cell of an organism which is capable of giving rise to many more cells of the same type, and from which certain other cells can arise from differentiation
• what are the two types of stem cells in humans?

  embryonic stem cells and adult stem cells
• what are embryonic stem cells?

  they can be cloned and made to differentiate into most different types of human cells
• where can adult stem cells be found?

  in adult bone marrow
• what can adult stem cells form?

  many types of cells including blood cells
• where are plant stem cells found?

  in the meristem tissue
• where can the meristem tissue be found in a plant?

  the root
• how are animal and plant stem cells different?

  plant stem cells can differentiate for their whole life and become any type of cell
• What conditions can be helped by treatment with stem cells?

  Diabetes and paralysis
• what is therapeutic cloning?

  where a cell is taken from an adult and used to make an early embryo of themselves which then produces embryonic stem cells that are a perfect match for a person
• what is a potential risk of using stem cells?

  viral infection
• what objections could someone have to the use of stem cells?

  ethical or religious objections
• what can stem cells from meristems in plants be used to do?

  produce clones of plants quickly and economically
• what can be done with plant stem cells?

  • Rare species can be cloned to protect from extinction
  • Crop plants with special features such as disease resistance can be cloned to produce large numbers of identical plants for farmers