--stem cell research, your opinion?--
As reported on nytimes.com, 11/19/2008:
"Physicians at four European universities have completed what they say is the first successful transplant of a human windpipe using a patient’s own stem cells to fashion an organ and prevent its rejection by her immune system, according to an article in the British medical journal The Lancet."
Apparently, the woman's windpipe was so severely damage as a result of tuberculosis that the only other conventional option, removing her left lung, had a severe risk of both complications and mortality. Instead, the four universities collaborated to strip 3 inches of a donor's trachea of any remaining donor cells while simultaneously culturing the woman's own stem cell line removed from her blood marrow. These adult stem cells were used to "seed" the donor trachea, after which the graft surgically replaced the woman's damage windpipe. Without using any immunosuppressants, the woman has experienced no signs of rejection of the graft nearly 4 months after the surgery, which was "almost indistinguishable from adjacent normal bronchi," according to Prof. Paolo Macchiarini of the University of Barcelona. The complete article can be found here.
This is clearly a victory for proponents of stem cell research, avoiding most of the controversy surrounding the subject, because it contained no stem cells gathered from embryos. But it belies a bigger question, what are the viable uses for this kind of surgical procedure? In cases where a patient's life is at risk, I imagine most will agree that this procedure is beneficial. What about situations where the surgery is not only optional (not a life threatening situation), but also preferable? Patients with asthma could have a new lung grafted, or *gasp* tweaks could be made to the person's DNA in the stem cells to improve muscle density, resulting in the potential to graft stronger legs or arms for athletes, etc.
So what do you think: should this kind of surgery be used to enhance (cosmetically or performance-wise) an otherwise healthy individual? If you could replace any muscle or organ, which one would you choose and why? Post your comments below.
"Physicians at four European universities have completed what they say is the first successful transplant of a human windpipe using a patient’s own stem cells to fashion an organ and prevent its rejection by her immune system, according to an article in the British medical journal The Lancet."
Apparently, the woman's windpipe was so severely damage as a result of tuberculosis that the only other conventional option, removing her left lung, had a severe risk of both complications and mortality. Instead, the four universities collaborated to strip 3 inches of a donor's trachea of any remaining donor cells while simultaneously culturing the woman's own stem cell line removed from her blood marrow. These adult stem cells were used to "seed" the donor trachea, after which the graft surgically replaced the woman's damage windpipe. Without using any immunosuppressants, the woman has experienced no signs of rejection of the graft nearly 4 months after the surgery, which was "almost indistinguishable from adjacent normal bronchi," according to Prof. Paolo Macchiarini of the University of Barcelona. The complete article can be found here.
This is clearly a victory for proponents of stem cell research, avoiding most of the controversy surrounding the subject, because it contained no stem cells gathered from embryos. But it belies a bigger question, what are the viable uses for this kind of surgical procedure? In cases where a patient's life is at risk, I imagine most will agree that this procedure is beneficial. What about situations where the surgery is not only optional (not a life threatening situation), but also preferable? Patients with asthma could have a new lung grafted, or *gasp* tweaks could be made to the person's DNA in the stem cells to improve muscle density, resulting in the potential to graft stronger legs or arms for athletes, etc.
So what do you think: should this kind of surgery be used to enhance (cosmetically or performance-wise) an otherwise healthy individual? If you could replace any muscle or organ, which one would you choose and why? Post your comments below.