Chicago Center for Jewish Genetics Disorders - Genetics Counseling Licensure

Stem Cell Research

What is stem cell research?
Adult Stem Cells
Embryonic Stem Cells
Why is stem cell research controversial?
Stem Cell Research in the United States
Stem Cell Research in Illinois: the Illinois Regenerative Medicine Institute
Additional Information

What is stem cell research?

Stem cells are a unique kind of cell. Most cells in the body are specialized, meaning they have developed certain characteristics and serve certain functions, like skin cells or lung cells. Stem cells are unspecialized cells that can not only renew themselves for long periods of time, but can sometimes be induced to become a specialized cell. Stem cell research explores the potential for stem cell use in medical treatments, which is often called regenerative medicine. If successful, stem cells could be used to treat a wide variety of degenerative diseases, like Parkinson’s Disease or heart disease, by replacing damaged cells with healthy new cells.

Scientists currently study two different types of stem cells- adult stem cells and embryonic stem cells- that come from animals and humans. Each type of stem cell has its own special functions and characteristics and holds a great deal of hope for treating devastating diseases, including Jewish genetic disorders.

Adult Stem Cells

Certain adult body tissues, found in bone marrow, muscles and the brain, have their own supply of undifferentiated or unspecialized stem cells (cells that have not yet been determined as a specific type of cell) that make specialized replacements of cells that were lost through injury, disease, or the normal effects of day-to-day life. Adult stem cells generally only regenerate the cell types of the tissue they live in.

New research indicates that adult stem cells may have the ability to specialize into the cells of a different type of tissue. For example, a blood-forming adult stem cell taken from bone marrow may be able to regenerate insulin-producing cells in the liver. Researchers are actively exploring the possibility of using adult stem cells for cell-based therapies.

Embryonic Stem Cells

Embryonic stem cells are taken from embryos that have been fertilized in an in vitro fertilization clinic and then donated for research purposes. They are never taken from fertilized embryos inside a womb. Human embryonic stem cells are generally taken when the embryo is 3-5 days old, when the embryo is a ball of cells called a blastocyst, which contains approximately 30 cells inside a hollow cavity.

The cells from the blastocyst are carefully grown in a laboratory for at least six months. By this time, the original 30 cells have grown into millions of embryonic stem cells. Together, these embryonic stem cells are referred to as an embryonic stem cell line, because they all grew out of the same original blastocyst.

Embryonic stem cells have the potential to grow into any type of cell found within the human body, which offers enormous potential for regenerative medicine. Researchers are also trying to discover why embryonic stem cells are able to grow in a laboratory for over a year without differentiating. Understanding more about normal cell development and division may help researchers better understand abnormal cell division, which can lead to cancer.

Why is stem cell research controversial?

The controversy surrounding stem cell research has two major components- religion and ethics.

The religious debate is almost entirely concerned with human embryonic stem cells. Some religious denominations oppose human embryonic stem cell research on account of research technology itself, because it uses human embryos for purposes other than human reproduction. Much of the religious debate surrounding human embryonic stem cell research is based on the notion that human life begins with conception, whether or not conception took place outside of the womb.

The bioethical debate is concerned more with the usage of reproductive technology than with the technology itself. Opponents of stem cell research on ethical grounds argue a “slippery-slope” effect, and fear that human embryonic stem cell research will lead to human cloning or other manipulations of human tissues for purposes other than regenerative medicine.

Jewish law, or halacha, supports the use of human embryonic stem cells for research and regenerative medicine, but also requires careful guidelines to prevent misuse of reproductive technology. More information on both sides of the stem cell research controversy will soon be posted in the Bioethics section.

Stem Cell Research in the United States

Stem cell research is currently legal throughout the United States, according to both state and federal laws. On August 9, 2001, President George W. Bush announced a federal policy to provide federal funding only for research on stem cells lines which had been created on or by that date. In August 2001, there were approximately 72 individual stem cell lines available for federal funding. By May 2003, many of these stem cell lines had degraded, becoming unfit for research. Other stem cell lines are so genetically similar that they do not offer enough diversity for accurate analysis. Currently, of the original 72 stem cell lines available for federal funding, only 11 are still viable.

Since the United States Congress has not banned human embryonic stem cell research, individual states are able to pass their own legislation. The most well known state initiative is perhaps California‘s Proposition 71, which establishes the California Institute of Regenerative Medicine and provides $3 billion over the next ten years for human embryonic stem cell research.

Stem Cell Research in Illinois: The Illinois Regenerative Medicine Institute

In November 2004, Illinois Comptroller Daniel Hynes proposed the creation of a state-funded Illinois Regenerative Medicine Institute (IRMI), which would award stem cell research grants amounting to $1 billion over ten years. For the original press release from the Office of the Comptroller, click here. If the proposal is successful, the issue will be voted on by the citizens of Illinois in a ballot referendum in the November 2006 general election.

The Office of the Comptroller has put together the Illinois Coalition for Cures, a coalition of health advocacy groups, research groups, and disease-specific foundations and organizations in support of the IRMI proposal. In March 2005, the Chicago Center for Jewish Genetic Disorders proudly joined the Illinois Coalition for Cures, and joined over 300 coalition members in the state capital to lobby for IRMI.

The proposal to establish the IRMI was filed with the Illinois General Assembly on February 25, 2005 as HB 3815 and SB2100. The House version has since been amended, and is now HB2249. The status and text of both bills can be found at the Illinois General Assembly website, http://www.ilga.gov/.

On July 12, 2005, Governor Rod J. Blagojevich signed an Executive Order that directs the Illinois Department of Public Health to create the IRMI program, allocating $10 million in research grants in the first year. The Executive Order establishes Illinois as the first state in the Midwest, and fourth in the United States, to commit public funds for stem cell research. The IRMI program is expected to go into effect by the end of the year.

Additional Information
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Official Press Release- Office of the Governor of the State of Illinois
7/12/2005

Blagojevich Earmarks Money for Stem Cell Research
Associated Press, 7/12/2005

Illinois to Pay for Stem Cell Research
New York Times, 7/13/2005

Governor Slips Stem Cell Grant Past Lawmakers
Chicago Tribune, 7/13/2005

Office of the Comptroller

Illinois Department of Public Health

For general information on stem cell research, the National Institute of Health’s Stem Cell Information section contains a thorough explanation of the science and promise of stem cell research. The Stem Cell Research Foundation also offers a list of Frequently Asked stem cell questions.