Stem Cells

• Stem Cells


  Undifferentiated cells that can divide to produce more undifferentiated cells and differentiate into different types of cells
• Embryonic Stem Cells


  • Can turn into any type of cell
• Differentiation


  The process by which a cell changes to become specialised for its job
• Undifferentiated cells


  Stem cells that can divide to produce more undifferentiated cells
• Stem cells


  • Found in early human embryos
  • Have the potential to turn into any kind of cell
• Adult stem cells


  • Found in certain places like bone marrow
  • Can't turn into any cell type, only certain ones like blood cells
• Using stem cells in medicine

  1. Grow stem cells from embryos and bone marrow in a lab

  2. Produce clones (genetically identical cells)

  3. Differentiate into specialised cells

  4. Use in medicine or research
• Diseases stem cells could cure

  • Diabetes (insulin-producing cells)
  • Spinal injuries (nerve cells)
• Therapeutic cloning


  Making an embryo with the same genetic information as the patient so the stem cells wouldn't be rejected
• Risks of using stem cells in medicine

  Stem cells grown in lab may become contaminated with a virus and make the patient sicker
• Arguments against stem cell research

  • Embryos are potential human lives and shouldn't be used for experiments
  • Curing existing patients is more important than rights of embryos
  • Embryos used are usually unwanted ones from fertility clinics that would be destroyed anyway
  • Scientists should focus on finding other sources of stem cells
• Stem cell research is banned in some countries, but allowed in the UK as long as it follows strict guidelines
• Plant stem cells


  • Found in the meristems (parts of the plant where growth occurs)
  • Throughout the plant's life, can differentiate into any type of plant cell
• Using plant stem cells

  1. Grow crops of identical plants

  2. Grow more plants of rare species to prevent them being wiped out

  3. Produce clones (identical copies) of whole plants quickly and cheaply with desired features