Scientific experiments are being conducted daily to find out new things about the world, whether it’s to change lives, or just for the sake of curiosity. A group of scientists from the Israel Institute of Science have recently created a lab model of human embryos using stem cells to investigate early human development.
For years, scientists were limited to embryos that came from miscarriages and abortions, which were usually obtained later in the developmental season, so they could not see the early formations of life like the moment fertilization, where the sperm cell and the egg cell unite.
Scientists were also only limited to 14 days with an embryo before it enters something called gastrulation, where three important layers- the endoderm, mesoderm, and ectoderm- are formed. This is the point when the embryo develops the digestive system, bones, muscles, and skin. Scientists were not allowed to study past this point because it was considered inappropriate and inconsiderate to the human life.
Instead, scientists and researchers have now created lab models to simulate early human embryos. These models can show the fertilization of the embryo and early development that would not be possible to observe using real embryos obtained from abortions and miscarriages.
With the testing of lab models over a longer duration of time, many outsiders worry that the models will eventually l grow into an infant and live an entire life. However, scientists debunk this concern by affirming that the lab models are not real embryos and will not become a human being. “We do it to save lives, not create it,” said Magdalena Zernicka-Goetz, a developmental biologist at the University of Cambridge.
Using these lab models, scientists can discover causes to pregnancy failures and infertility, and then they can help form effective treatments. Embryo models can also simulate effects of certain drugs and identify risks to the child when the mother takes the medicine.
Scientists can also use these lab models for patients that need blood transplants. They first convert a patient’s skin cells into stem-cell-like form. These stem cells are developed into an embryo model, which then generates the early blood cells required for transplants.
However, Dr. Muotri, a biologist at the University of California San Diego, states, “The work is in very early stages, and the current methods are far from reliable.” Most cases were fails and could not form an embryo. Maybe in the future, scientists and researchers will be able to figure out how to stabilize these embryos and be able to revolutionize the medical field.
Sources: https://www.nytimes.com/2023/06/24/science/human-embryos-lab-models-fertility.html
For years, scientists were limited to embryos that came from miscarriages and abortions, which were usually obtained later in the developmental season, so they could not see the early formations of life like the moment fertilization, where the sperm cell and the egg cell unite.
Scientists were also only limited to 14 days with an embryo before it enters something called gastrulation, where three important layers- the endoderm, mesoderm, and ectoderm- are formed. This is the point when the embryo develops the digestive system, bones, muscles, and skin. Scientists were not allowed to study past this point because it was considered inappropriate and inconsiderate to the human life.
Instead, scientists and researchers have now created lab models to simulate early human embryos. These models can show the fertilization of the embryo and early development that would not be possible to observe using real embryos obtained from abortions and miscarriages.
With the testing of lab models over a longer duration of time, many outsiders worry that the models will eventually l grow into an infant and live an entire life. However, scientists debunk this concern by affirming that the lab models are not real embryos and will not become a human being. “We do it to save lives, not create it,” said Magdalena Zernicka-Goetz, a developmental biologist at the University of Cambridge.
Using these lab models, scientists can discover causes to pregnancy failures and infertility, and then they can help form effective treatments. Embryo models can also simulate effects of certain drugs and identify risks to the child when the mother takes the medicine.
Scientists can also use these lab models for patients that need blood transplants. They first convert a patient’s skin cells into stem-cell-like form. These stem cells are developed into an embryo model, which then generates the early blood cells required for transplants.
However, Dr. Muotri, a biologist at the University of California San Diego, states, “The work is in very early stages, and the current methods are far from reliable.” Most cases were fails and could not form an embryo. Maybe in the future, scientists and researchers will be able to figure out how to stabilize these embryos and be able to revolutionize the medical field.
Sources: https://www.nytimes.com/2023/06/24/science/human-embryos-lab-models-fertility.html
