The application of stem cells and cloning technology remain to be practices that raise ethical concerns. The first moral issue relating to stem cells and cloning is the safety of such experiments. According to Volarevich et al. (2018), some experiments show that the transplantation of human stem cells results in the development of teratomas, which are tumors with three germ layers. This is only one example of health concerns linked to stem cell use.
Secondly, some of these therapies are based on the use of cells derived from human embryos. As Volarevic et al. (2018) note, “ethical dilemma involving the destruction of a human embryo is a major factor” that contributes to the limited use of this practice (p. 36). Ilic and Ogilvie (2017) argue that this is a dilemma between the obligation of doctors and scientists to save lives and the need to destroy it in order to obtain stem cells. Pursuing research with the use of these cells would mean accepting that the destruction of early-stage human embryos is acceptable.
Finally, the use of stem cells is linked to cloning due to induced pluripotent stem cells, which resolved the dilemma with using embryos (Volarevic et al., 2018). The result of this is the potential risk of having genetically engineered humans or even experiments with combining the genes of humans and animals. The root of the dilemma with cloning is the answer to the question, can scholars and practitioners make decisions about recreating or manipulating human genes.
Cloning is considered unethical because there are many psychological, biological, and social concerns relating to this process. However, in the modern-day context, cloning can mean anything from creating a copy of a cell to recreating an entire organism, and the moral issues in these cases differ (Raff, 2018). For example, with the replication of an organism, the self-identification of the cloned individual is under threat. Raff (2018) argues that molecular cloning is an ethically acceptable practice and is routinely done in laboratories. However, full-organism cloning is a technically complex and controversial process.
Moreover, the purpose of full organism cloning and its end result presents an ethical dilemma. The main question is why clone an individual, what was the goal and expected outcome from such an experiment. The place of the cloned individual in the society and their role remain under question. Finally, previous studies and experiments on animals have shown that cloning presents a danger to the organism and can have unpredictable outcomes. Volarevic et al. (2018) argue that “undesired differentiation and malignant transformation” remain to be the core concerns with these practices (p. 36). Hence, both cloning and use of stem cells may be dangerous for a person, which puts people at substantial risk, and therefore these practices should be used with caution.
Overall, stem cell research and cloning present several ethical dilemmas for researchers and practitioners regarding the safety of patients, the potential consequences of these practices, and the use of embryos to derive stem cells. However, stem cell therapy shows promising results for treating patients, which will require defining the morally acceptable grounds for using stem cells. As for cloning, it is sufficient to clone molecules for research or practical purposes. However, full organism cloning is considered unethical due to its impact on an individual and society in general.
References
Ilic, D., & Ogilvie, C. (2016). Concise review: Human embryonic stem cells-What have we done? What are we doing? Where are we going? Stem Cells, 35(1), 17-25. Web.
Raff, J. (2018). Cloning. The International Encyclopedia of Biological Anthropology, 1-2. Web.
Volarevic, V., Markovic, B. S., Gazdic, M., Volarevic, A., Jovicic, N., Arsenijevic, N., Armstrong, L., Djonov, V., Lako, M., & Stojkovic, M. (2018). Ethical and safety issues of stem cell-based therapy.International Journal of Medical Sciences, 15(1), 36–45. Web.