Success in synthesizing ‘human embryo model’ without sperm or egg
By. Dahye Kim
Introduction
In the field of medicine, stem cell therapy is widely studied. Stem cells are used to repair and replace damaged tissues and organs in the body, and have a huge potential to revolutionise medicine. Through stem cell research, researchers will be able to develop various medications, treat disease, and overall improve health and quality of life. However, ethical dilemmas and violations of human dignity can result in certain outcomes. September 6th, the Weizmann Institute team synthesised an embryo model that looks like a real 14-day-old embryo. This investigation was started to fix ethical problems related to embryonic stem cells.
What are stem cells
Stem cells are cells that have the ability to duplicate into various types of body issues, also known as “undifferentiated”cells. The process of cell division and getting structures of the body is called differentiation. As humans grow, their height, weight, and personality are formed through the process of differentiation. Stem cell therapy is one of the treatments that uses the differentiation. By introducing stem cells to the damaged areas, caused by diseases or accidents, it heals the affected area.
Original ethical problems of embryonic stem cells
We can classify stem cells into three categories based on their differentiation ability and location of origin. First, Adult stem cells are extracted from umbilical cords or adult bodies. Among other stem cells, they have the lowest differentiation ability in that they can only differentiate into limited cells related to organs. They are highly stable and safe. Therefore, it is the most active stem cell in the therapy development. Second, embryonic stem cells derived from the fertilised egg, have the ability to differentiate into all types of tissue in the human body. For that reason, it is the most innovative stem cell, but use of these stem cells have led to the rise of ethical dilemmas as to whether or not the embryos are considered living or not. Induced pluripotent stem cells are cells that are reprogrammed from normal body cells to stem cells. This process is accomplished by inserting specific genes and simulating them to become embryonic-like stem cells. Thus, they have similar differentiation abilities as embryonic stem cells. However, there are risks of using this cell due to it having similar structure as a human immunodeficiency virus (HIV), which is a virus that is used as a stimulant.
The ethical question in stem cell research is “Should stem cells need to be considered as a human life form”. Adult stem cells can be extracted from either umbilical cords or adult body cells and induced pluripotent stem cells are created by modifying ordinary cells; they have less ethical issues. However, embryonic stem cells are extracted from fertilized eggs, where life is created, so there is some conflicting view on the ethical aspect of life. The argument of those who oppose embryonic stem cell research based on ethical grounds is that these cells have the potential to develop into life. Therefore, damaging embryonic cells means infringing upon the right of life and dignity of human beings. On the contrary, those arguing against stated that an embryo cannot be considered living since it has not developed specific organs and reached 14 days of fertilization.
How did they create a model of the human embryo
Instead of a sperm and egg, the starting material was naive stem cells which were reprogrammed to gain the potential to become any type of tissue in the body. After, they used chemical to coax these stem cells into becoming four types of cells found in the earliest stages of the human embryo:
A. Epiblast cells: become the embryo proper (or foetus)
B. Trophoblast cells: Provide nutrients to the embryo, become the placenta
C. Hypoblast cells: Become the supportive layer of cells in amniote embryos.
D. Extraembryonic mesoderm cells: Amnion and yolk sac
Source: Nature/Weizmann Institute
A total of 120 of these cells were mixed in a precise ratio and developed into embryo-like structures. Prof Hanna says “I give great credit to the cells - you have to bring the right mix and have the right environment and it just takes off. That’s an amazing phenomenon.”(Gallagher, 2023)
How synthesis embryo stem cells can impact the science area
Prof Alfonso Martinez Arias, from the department of experimental and health sciences at Pompeu Fabra University said "The work has, for the first time, achieved a faithful construction of the complete structure [of a human embryo] from stem cells" in the lab, "thus opening the door for studies of the events that lead to the formation of the human body plan,"(Gallagher, 2023).
This synthesised embryo stem cells would not be illegal, as embryo models are legally distinct from embryos. However, other ethical problems can arise. “As the closer these models come to an actual embryo, should we consider them as human embryos or can we be a bit more relaxed about how they’re treated?”.
Likewise, there are many ethical problems going on as science is rapidly growing. To solve these ethical problems we should educate people about ethics. The French phenomenologist Michel Henry criticised the blind pursuit of scientific and technological progress in his book "Barbarism" by stating, "Free from all relations, detached from any purposeful totality, technology advances blindly, like an international ballistic missile, not knowing where it comes from, where it is going, or why." (“과학발전에 윤리의 역할은?,” 2008) Thus, we need to develop education of ethics in science and increase awareness of it. For stem cell therapy, it is important to identify and seek solutions to ethical issues related to stem cell therapy in each specialised field. In this way, we can make a safer and better society.
MLA citation:
Sheng, G. (2015). Epiblast morphogenesis before gastrulation. Developmental Biology, 401(1), 17–24. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.ydbio.2014.10.003
Wang, Y., & Zhao, S. (2023). Cell Types of the Placenta. Retrieved October 30, 2023, from Nih.gov website: https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/books/NBK53245/#:~:text=Trophoblasts%20
Why and how science should respect the dignity and rights of all humans. (2022). Nature Human Behaviour, 6(10), 1321–1323. https://doi.org/10.1038/s41562-022-01472-x
The Economist. (2023, March 8). How genome editing will change humanity. Retrieved October 30, 2023, from The Economist website: https://www.economist.com/human-genome-editing-pod
McKie, R. (2023, February 5). How far should we go with gene editing in pursuit of the “perfect” human?. Retrieved October 30, 2023, from the Guardian website: https://www.theguardian.com/science/2023/feb/05/how-far-should-we-go-with-gene-editing-in-pursuit-of-the-perfect-human
Joseph, A. M., Karas, M., Ramadan, Y., Joubran, E., & Jacobs, R. J. (2022). Ethical Perspectives of Therapeutic Human Genome Editing From Multiple and Diverse Viewpoints: A Scoping Review. Cureus. https://doi.org/10.7759/cureus.31927
