TY - JOUR
T1 - The biological and ethical basis of the use of human embryonic stem cells for in vitro test systems or cell therapy
AU - Leist, Marcel
AU - Bremer, Susanne
AU - Brundin, Patrik
AU - Hescheler, Jürgen
AU - Kirkeby, Agnete
AU - Krause, Karl Heinz
AU - Pörzgen, Peter
AU - Pucéat, Michel
AU - Schmidt, Mathias
AU - Schrattenholz, André
AU - Zak, Naomi B.
AU - Hentze, Hannes
PY - 2008/12/1
Y1 - 2008/12/1
N2 - Human embryonic stem cells (hESC) are now routinely cultured in many laboratories, and differentiation protocols are available to generate a large variety of cell types. In an ongoing ethical debate opinions of different groups are based on varying sets of religious, historical, cultural and scientific arguments as well as on widely differing levels of general information. We here give an overview of the biological background for non-specialists, and address all issues of the current stem cell debate that are of concern in different cultures and states. Thirty-five chapters address embryo definition, potential killing and the beginning of human life, in addition to matters of human dignity, patenting, commercialisation, and potential alternatives for the future, such as induced pluripotent (reprogrammed) stem cells. All arguments are compiled in a synopsis, and compromise solutions, e.g. for the definition of the beginning of personhood and for assigning dignity to embryos, are suggested. Until recently, the major application of hESC was thought to be transplantation of cells derived from hESC for therapeutic use. We discuss here that the most likely immediate uses will rather be in vitro test systems and disease models. Major and minor pharmaceutical companies have entered this field, and the European Union is sponsoring academic research into hESC-based innovative test systems. This development is supported by new testing strategies in Europe and the USA focussing on human cell-based in vitro systems for safety evaluations, and shifting the focus of toxicology away from classical animal experiments towards a more mechanistic understanding.
AB - Human embryonic stem cells (hESC) are now routinely cultured in many laboratories, and differentiation protocols are available to generate a large variety of cell types. In an ongoing ethical debate opinions of different groups are based on varying sets of religious, historical, cultural and scientific arguments as well as on widely differing levels of general information. We here give an overview of the biological background for non-specialists, and address all issues of the current stem cell debate that are of concern in different cultures and states. Thirty-five chapters address embryo definition, potential killing and the beginning of human life, in addition to matters of human dignity, patenting, commercialisation, and potential alternatives for the future, such as induced pluripotent (reprogrammed) stem cells. All arguments are compiled in a synopsis, and compromise solutions, e.g. for the definition of the beginning of personhood and for assigning dignity to embryos, are suggested. Until recently, the major application of hESC was thought to be transplantation of cells derived from hESC for therapeutic use. We discuss here that the most likely immediate uses will rather be in vitro test systems and disease models. Major and minor pharmaceutical companies have entered this field, and the European Union is sponsoring academic research into hESC-based innovative test systems. This development is supported by new testing strategies in Europe and the USA focussing on human cell-based in vitro systems for safety evaluations, and shifting the focus of toxicology away from classical animal experiments towards a more mechanistic understanding.
KW - Human embryonic stem cells
KW - In vitro toxicology
KW - iPs cells
KW - Stem cell ethics
UR - http://www.scopus.com/inward/record.url?scp=58949087263&partnerID=8YFLogxK
M3 - Review
C2 - 18841314
AN - SCOPUS:58949087263
SN - 0946-7785
VL - 25
SP - 163
EP - 190
JO - Altex
JF - Altex
IS - 3
ER -
