Eric+Lunzer

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Stem cell research is taking an undeveloped cell in your body and turning it into another cell, essentially allowing you to create a liver that would be accepted by your body, as opposed to a donor that might be rejected by your body. this would also give an unlimited amount of new body parts for those who need it, also a new finger arm, leg, liver, heart, eye, etc. this research would save lives. (no its still //research)// the most recent development is very much loved by women, a cream that tells the stem cells in the face to produce more skin, and reduce wrinkles, and such. however, the most significant is still the ability to replace an umbilical cord (however not completely). the research uses stem cells which are found in huge by undeveloped fetuses so that is what is used for research, but they could bee taken from an adult body as well.=====

CHINA HAS THE LEAD WITH THE BEIKE BIOTECHNOLOGY SCIENCE FOUNDATION!!!

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"Imagine a man dying of liver failure. If we could take a somatic cell from his skin and place the nuclear DNA into a denucleated egg cell, we would have created an almost exact copy of that sick man's cell, capable of differentiating into his clone. Instead of allowing the cloned cell to develop into a fetus, we might place it (or its stem cells alone) into the appropriate environment that would cause it to differentiate into a liver that would be virtually genetically identical to the sick man. If we could "grow" this liver to maturity, we could offer the sick man a liver transplant without the risk of rejection and without the need for anti-rejection drugs." (jewishvirtuallibrary)=====

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Now the halachic problems are that it is like cloning and the research would use pre-embryos (depending on case this could vary) that have been frozen. the issue with this is that at what point are these dead or alive? Is vitro-fertilization even allowed in the first place? May tissue from aborted fetuses be used for research or medical treatment?===== The first thing to consider is whether or not taking an embryo and taking off tissue is allowed. These are not being used, however Jewish law states we may not harm a person, and in Jewish law up till now fetuses have been treated as full people. this is in essence what stem cells would do. and these are only a few possibilities, stem cells can turn into anything! Rabbi Eliezar Waldenber is currently one of the only rabbis who permit these tests,but in my opinion these rabbis should reconsider, because the fetuses are already defective. The issue is that we would be destroying and taking apart fetuses. Some rule that only saving the life of the mother justifies violating Shabbat or Yom Kippur. The Behag, however, believes that one may violate Shabbat or Yom Kippur even to save the life of the fetus. The Ramban, Rashba, and Ritva endorse the Behag's ruling.

The Shulchan Aruch does not explicitly address this dispute. However, the Tur rules in accordance with the Behag. The Mishna Berura and Aruch Hashulchan appear to rule in accordance with the Behag. The Maharsham, Teshuvot Tzitz Eliezer, and Shemirat Shabbat Kehilchata explicitly rule in accordance with the Behag. these opinions are all against using Fetuses, because they all show that the fetus is alive. I disagree because this research will save countless people, with any defect. people talk about finding the cure for cancer, THIS IS IT! this research WILL cure cancer! ([])