Cells in the body are specialised cells which mean they are differentiated for a particular function, but there are some cells that have not differentiated, these are stem cells. In animals stem cells are formed in the bone marrow in which they form into specialised cells like red blood cells, fats tissues, epithelial tissues etc…
However stem cells can also be found in embryos, these are embryonic stem cells. This is formed when the sperm and the egg fuse together and the fertilized egg divides over and over again to produce and embryo. For the first few days they stay as stem cells and then have the potential to become any type of cell. But they can be taken out before they develop into any type of cell.
Using Stem Cells The main potential of stem cells is that it can generate new cells. These can be used to cure various diseases because they have the ability to form any cell. Suppose if a person is in need of white blood cells or red blood cells these stem cells can be put into the body where needed and produce new red blood cells or white blood cells. It can also be used for testing new drugs for example, new medications could be tested for safety on differentiated cells generated from human pluripotent cell lines.
Ethical issues of stem cells In the case of embryonic stem cell research, it is impossible to respect both moral principles prevent suffering and to respect the value of life. To obtain embryonic stem cells, the early embryo has to be destroyed. This