Heart valve grown from stem cells (4/02/07)

Judgement

is a Forum Moderator Alumnus
http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/health/6517645.stm

In Britain, a team of physicists, pharmacologists, cellular scientists, and clinicians have successfully grown heart valve tissue with stem cells. They plan to implant said tissue into animals to see if it works the same as heart valve tissue, which can anticipate changes in blood flow (in other words, they do more than open and close), which is unlike artificial valves. The team used stem cells extracted from bone marrow. As many people know, stem cells can turn into any kind of specialized cell, which is why there is much hope for their use in the future. The team of scientists hope to be able to create entire human hearts with stem cells within 10 years, a prediction that brings hope to many, as heart disease is a major cause of death in many developed countries. In the UK, it is the number one killer, with 200,000 people having died in 2004 from heart-related diseases.
 
This is a hopeful sign to help against cardio problems. No cell rejection is cool, and this will probably be the alternative to heart transplant.
 
This is really exciting news. I don't really know what else to say that won't turn this into an abortion debate, so... yeah.
 
yeah, all arguments aside, i'm really happy about this, and i havent even lost anyone to heart disease. a big step forward, for sure.
 
My only concern is the cost it takes to produce a single replacement heart valve. Some whole people are less expensive than a single manufactured heart from a completely non-humanitarian point of view.
 
I don't know what's with all this propaganda against ESC (Embryonic Stem Cell) research. Embryos are not real babies, and even if they are.. well, at least they gave up their lives to save another one, not to kill other humans. *coughwaroniraqcough*
 
That is very good news. Why is it that we want to avoid abortion debates? True they are heated, and don't go anywhere, but it's the same with discussions on any controversial issue. I kinda posted that thread about the new abortion law in SC with the intent of it becoming an abortion discussion...but it was closed so that wouldn't happen. =\
 
stonerchris said:
That is very good news. Why is it that we want to avoid abortion debates? True they are heated, and don't go anywhere, but it's the same with discussions on any controversial issue. I kinda posted that thread about the new abortion law in SC with the intent of it becoming an abortion discussion...but it was closed so that wouldn't happen. =\
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You have two sides: the fact that it can help people and that the embryos are already aware before birth. They don't really go anywhere and there isn't enough scientific evidence on either side because there has not been enough research on either side, so it's really based on theory and not fact. That's why we are trying to prevent such discussions; they just do not lead anywhere.
 
I'm hoping that they don't grow a whole new heart from this, people will stop caring about their health as much once they know they can get it fixed. I'm alright with stem cell research, but I'm glad this came from Bone Marrow, rather than Embryonic stem cells.
 
CoolTrainer20 said:
I'm hoping that they don't grow a whole new heart from this, people will stop caring about their health as much once they know they can get it fixed.
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Unlikely. I believe pain is enough of a deterrent from injury, and generating whole organs would help thousands of patients on the donor waiting list.
Those who would test the endurance of their livers a la Leaving Las Vegas would be rare.
 
Doing something like that doesn't just fuck up your heart - it messes up various blood vessels too. Even if you got a new heart, you probably wouldn't be adding much time to the clock unless you took care of your other problems.
 
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