What can be learned from human embryonic stem cell research?
Apart from their potential to provide new tissues for transplantation therapy, embryonic stem cells are powerful research tools. Embryonic stem cells enable us to study early human development, and to understand the origins of birth defects and childhood cancers. We can use embryonic stem cell cultures to study human gene function in the appropriate species context, a very important capability in the post-genome era. We know what the human genome contains, but in many cases we do not know how the genes function. Human stem cells allow us to study human gene function. Finally, we can use stem cell culture to develop new medicines and study their effects on human beings. For the first time, embryonic stem cells provide us with an unlimited supply of normal human tissue. Previously, those wishing to study drug action and toxicity had to work with abnormal cell lines from human cancers, limited amounts of tissues taken directly from patients, animals or volunteer human subjects.
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