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Stem Cells Restore Sight For Corneal Disease Patients

Sean0michael writes "Australian scientists have restored the sight of three human test subjects using stem cells cultured in contact lenses. All the patients were blind in only one eye. Two were legally blind, but can now read the big letters on an eye chart. The third could read the first few lines, but is now able to pass a driver's test. The University of New South Wales reports that these patients all had damaged corneas, and the stem cells came from each person's good eye. The best part: the procedure is inexpensive, raising hopes for being able to push this to the third world sooner than other, more expensive medications."

4 of 223 comments (clear)

  1. Re:!embroyonic by harryandthehenderson · · Score: 0, Troll

    I have, hundreds of times.

    Gee, why wasn't I surprised that some nobody that no one has ever heard of would say this?

    The Roman Catholic Church is probably the biggest "embryonic stem cell whiner" there is, and THEY predicted this development of reproductive research back in 1976 (Humanae Vitae, encyclical of Pope Paul VI).

    But their objection is over it being the "murder" of the ball of cells not a complaint that "too many are being made".

    Which is why for Catholics, IVF is as big a sin as abortion (and is in fact the same sin).

    Wow, then you are even more backwards and stupid than I thought.

  2. Re:!embroyonic by harryandthehenderson · · Score: 0, Troll

    Funny, I know quite a few people that have.

    So name these people who have publicly gone out and said this.

    Maybe the bias lies in your selection of sources?

    My selection of source is are the people who vocally go into public and state their opposition.

    Your characterization of people that disagree with you as whiners indicates you wouldn't be receptive to the position anyway. Perhaps you've heard of it but dismissed it because it doesn't fit with your "insightful" strawman?

    Again, you use this term strawman but don't seem to know what it means.

    So keep the egg and sperm separate.

    So you want them to separate each individual egg and sperm? That is an impractical amount of work which is why they just do it en masse. You have fun separating the millions of sperm from each other from a sample of semen and see how practical what you state really is.

    That brings up a further ethical dilemma, create a new Octomon producing 8 kids at once, or abort the other ones that took to benefit the preferred embryo(s).

    It's her body she can do with it what she will.

    That's your OPINION

    Which is based on science.

    You can't back it with science since it is more of a philosophical question. I'm an atheist and yet I maintain that life begins at the moment of conception based on science as well.

    Then please link to this science that shows this.

    Which proves that they were already overcreating them.

    Please see above. Doing what you claim is just outright impractical.

    What happens, if there is a run on ESC research and clinics begin to run out? Deliberate creation of new embryos for research?

    If people consent to have their eggs and sperm being used to create more ESCs then sure.

    You were putting words in the mouths of the people that disagree with you.

    Nope, just describing the ultimate consequences of your position.

    You might not wish to accept it, but you were. You were arguing your view of their position ("they'd rather...") neglecting to state any opinion of your own. Hence, you were putting words into the mouths of others.

    Well considering that the fertilized eggs are going to be thrown away or incinerated because the clinic doesn't have space to keep them, if you object to the research you are in effect saying you'd rather have them destroyed then put to good use.

    Pretending that there are only two choices IS creating a strawman. It deliberately ignores other choices to make it seem like they don't exist.

    Nope, that would be a false dichotomy or false dilemma. Get your logical fallacies right please.

    No, I didn't tear anything down.

    I know you didn't. You failed to do anything at all but repeat more Religious Right bullshit.

  3. Re:!embroyonic by sortius_nod · · Score: 1, Troll

    I'd give up now, unfortunately the whole embryonic stem cell debate brings out the religious right who ignore studies. They seem use strawman arguments to try to push their own agenda.

    The rest of us who do actually read studies and support embryonic stem cells know what you're getting at.

    I bet these religious nuts don't even realise how much embryonic material (not just stem cells) are used in science. In fact, one of my friends when working in a neuroscience institution was quite frank with the fact she used aborted human embryos in her research. They keep it low key to stop the religious nuts from protesting or doing something destructive to the labs.

    It seems the most ill informed people in the world would prefer to see adults die rather than an aborted embryo be used for research.

  4. Wait... by PortHaven · · Score: 0, Troll

    So what number "stem cell" treatment discovery is this. And once again it's based upon adult stem cell. :P

    I'd rather be a troll, than an ogre!