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Article: Embryos and us.(Brief Article)
- Article from:
- The Christian Century
- Article date:
- August 1, 2001
CopyrightCOPYRIGHT 2001 The Christian Century Foundation. This material is published under license from the publisher through the Gale Group, Farmington Hills, Michigan. All inquiries regarding rights should be directed to the Gale Group. (Hide copyright information)
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Can we retain respect for the embryo without giving it absolute protection?
WHAT RESPECT and protection are owed to the human embryo in its first days of existence? The rise of stem cell research has forced the question. Scientists believe that the stem cells extracted from the earliest stages of the embryo have the capacity to grow into any type of tissue, and that these cells can be used to repair or replace damaged tissue and organs in people suffering from diseases like diabetes, Parkinson's and Alzheimer's.
In the face of such possible uses of humanity's freedom to explore and shape life, what respect is owed to the embryo? It's hard to give an ...