Stem Cells (Science Research Paper)

What is a stem cell? You are probably asking yourself this. It is ok, most people have never even heard of

stem cells. Whether you know about stem cells or not, I'm sure you'll agree. Stem cells are surprisingly

interesting.

Generally, stem cells are a fairly simple topic. Stem cells are cells that can divide indefinitely and have

the potential to develop into different types of cells (NOVA scienceNOW: Stem Cells). According to

theory, Stem cells can divide forever to replenish other cells as long as the organism is still alive (Stem

Cell Basics). This ability may make them important in treating diseases caused by the failure of a certain

kind of cell. There are two different kinds of stem cells.

The first kind of stem cells is adult stem cells. Adult stem cells are found among distinguished cells in a

tissue or organ that can regenerate and can differentiate to allow some or all of the major specialized

cell types of the tissue or organ (NOVA scienceNOW: Stem Cells). The primary roles of adult stem cells in

a living organism are to maintain and repair the tissue in which they are found (Chavis). Adult stem cells

are only able to differentiate into cell types of their tissue of origin (Chavis).

The other kind of stem cells is embryonic stem cells. They are derived from human embryos (Chavis).

Embryonic stem cells are fertilized and grown in specialized laboratories (Chavis). They can become all

cell types of the body because they are pluripotent, or capable of giving rise to several different cell

types (Chavis).

Stem cells are pretty cool. Studies show, stem cells may be the answer to treating devastating diseases.

A few examples would include type 1 diabetes, Parkinson's, Alzheimer's, and Arthritis  (Chavis). Do you think that we should continue to research stem cells?

Bibliography

Chavis, Jason. "eHow." Advantages of Embryonic Stem Cell Research.

NOVA scienceNOW: Stem Cells. 16 April 2012 <http://www.pbs.org/wgbh/nova/teachers/viewing/3209_04_nsn.html>.

Stem Cell Basics. 13 February 2012. 16 April 2012 <http://stemcells.nih.gov/info/basics/basics4.asp>.