raph of spidery living cells with branched, outreaching arms. These appear to be healthy human brain cells, said Gearhart, grown in a laboratory dish from a starter batch of stem cells by feeding them a special recipe of nutrients. He has injected some into the brains of rodents this fall and has started to assess their potential as a treatment for brain diseases. However, Gearharts method is far from foolproof. Many stem cells treated with the same nutrients do not become neurons, and retain the potential to become bone, muscle or other cells later on -cells that would not be welcome in a patients brain.Despite all the potential for future success, pro-life supporters are still adamant about stopping fetal tissue research. The National Right to Life Committee (NRLC) opposes federal funding of experimentation using body parts of deliberately aborted human beings. Douglas Johnson believes that if unborn children become a routine source of spare parts, their wholesale destruction will be even more ingrained in our culture and public policies. If fetal tissue transplantation should become a proven therapy, abortion opponents fear that it could influence public sentiment toward abortion. People might view abortion more favorably if they knew some good might come to others-or themselves-from it (Butler 708).Some of the pro-life activists fears are warranted though. An expos by 20/20 reviled that human fetal tissue is being donated and then in turn being sold on the research black market for as much as $999. The demand for fetal tissue skyrocketed when President Clinton lifted the ban on the research in 1993. This horrifying fact has made many think twice about where they stand on the issue. Obviously this needs to be stopped, but it should not be the cause of a halt on research altogether.The selling and buying of aborted fetuses is probably one of the worst setbacks the medical community could possibly have. By having this association, the...
