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Explore This Topic

Check Your Understanding

The following questions accompany this lesson. The answers are given below each question. To reveal an answer, place the cursor over "REVEAL THE ANSWER".

1. What is the difference between a pluripotent and a multipotent stem cell?
   

2. What is a blastocyst and why is it significant for stem cell research?
   

3. List four challenges that need to be overcome before embryonic stem cells could be used to treat disease.
   

4. Why are embryonic stem cells useful for testing the effects of drugs on genetic diseases?
   

5. How can the use of somatic cell nuclear transfer improve researchers' ability to test the effects of drugs?
   

6. Researchers may use a skin cell from a patient to create a line of stem cells, via somatic cell nuclear transfer, that are genetically identical to that patient. If the researchers wanted to study how the patient's genetic defect affected the patient's nerve cells, could they use the stem cell line generated from skin cells? Why or why not?
   

1. Conversations about the ethical implications of stem cell research often focus on whether or not it is morally right to use human embryos. However, there are many other ethical issues both in favor of and against this research. On your own or with a partner, brainstorm as many as you can. Then visit the website of the President's Council on Bioethics and compare the different perspectives of the Council members on these issues, as well as the rationale they provide for their positions.

2. Imagine you are a scientist who wants to know what role (if any) stem cells normally play in the adult brain. Specifically, you want to know: Is there is a population of cells in the brain that is capable of giving rise to new nerve cells long after we have reached maturity? What technical challenges would you face in trying to answer this question? What tools or procedures would you need? What advantages would there be in studying this question in rats or mice compared to studying it in humans? Once you have thought about how you would address the problem, read the Expert Interview with professor Gage to discover how his research group determined that adult brains do develop new nerve cells.

3. Stem cells are believed to have the potential to cure a long list of diseases including heart disease, certain cancers, spinal cord injury, ALS, Parkinson's, Alzheimer's, diabetes, HIV/AIDS, multiple sclerosis and osteoporosis. Since these diseases have very different mechanisms, treatments will need to be tailored for each disease. Think about what goes wrong in cancer, spinal cord injury and another disease of your choice. What are the different ways stem cells might be used to treat each of these diseases? What are the challenges that need to be overcome in each case? Use the materials in Links and Resources to help you.