President Obama omits stem cells from State of the Union address

Even though President Obama claims to be an advocate of stem cell research and has even made efforts to back up those claims, it is now obvious to me that he is afraid to talk about it when addressing the nation.

This is not the first time I've sat patiently and watched Obama speak to the world in hopes that he would acknowledge all of the advancements being made in stem cell research. Needless to say, this isn't the first time I've been disappointed either. I even wrote about it in 2009 (Obama Refrains From Discussing Stem Cells Directly...Again).

The closest he came to the topic was when he said "Last year, we made the largest investment in basic research funding in history, an investment -- an investment that could lead to the world's cheapest solar cells or treatment that kills cancer cells but leaves healthy ones untouched."

Unfortunately, he never explained what treatment was responsible for killing cancer cells and spent the rest of his time talking about energy. Apparently, state-of-the-art cancer treatment isn't a worthy enough topic to delve into during one of the most important speeches of the year.

Am I the only one who noticed this? I highly doubt it, since hundreds of thousands of families deal with cancer in the U.S. every day.

With so much happening in the stem cell industry as of late, I wonder how long Barack Obama will be able to avoid addressing stem cells before it starts to backfire on him politically?

Stem Cells: A Cure for HIV/AIDS?

AIDS (acquired immune deficiency syndrome) is the final and most serious stage of HIV, which severely damages the immune system.

About 40.3 million people around the world are currently living with HIV/AIDS and it is the 5th leading cause of death among people aged 25-44 in the United States. In some countries in Africa, more than 10% of the population is infected.

Currently, no cure is readily available and treatments tend to only prolong the inevitable while boasting serious side effects (if they are even available).

However, in February 2009, CNN reported that a 42-year-old HIV patient with leukemia appeared to have no detectable HIV in his blood and no symptoms after a stem cell transplant from a donor carrying a gene mutation that naturally resists HIV. (Man appears free of HIV after stem cell transplant)

Although stem cell transplants are risky, with about a third of patients dying from them since it destroys the immune system, it may be possible to develop some type of gene therapy or treatment that could be directly injected into the body. (Stem Cells Cut AIDS Virus in Patient, Ending Need for Drugs)

While this breakthrough offers a glimmer of hope for the millions already suffering, it is no replacement for prevention itself. Education, safe sex, and regular check ups are the first line of defense for stemming further infections. See HIV & AIDS Prevention for more information.

If you have a website or blog, you can win up to $500 in cash prizes while helping spread AIDS awareness by making a post about the highly underreported disease before December 15th, 2009.

Visit Health, Life & Stuff for more details about the AIDS Awareness Initiative.

Stem cells are both a source of great hope and great controversy

Hope, because they promise to cure a breathtaking variety of conditions, ranging from Parkison's disease to the damage caused by heart attacks. Stem cells may one day even be used to grow entirely new limbs and organs.

Controversy, because the most potent form of stem cells, those derived from human fetuses, are just that – derived from human fetuses. Proponents of embryonic stem cell research argue that the source is not human, while those opposed say such research is morally wrong.

What you should know, however, is that stem cell research goes far beyond embryonic research. So even if you oppose it, it almost goes without saying that general stem cell research is a very good thing.

First, everyone has lots of stem cells – they're responsible for a great deal of the natural cell cycle in your body. Stem cells are simply cells that aren't committed, so to speak.

Think of it like this: when you're a kid, you could become a professional dancer, mathematician or even President. When you're 50 years old, however, you are something and can do a lot more than when you were a kid. On the other hand, you have a lot less potential than you used to.

Most of your body consists of very specific tissue, like blood cells and say your immune system T lymphocytes. Those are “grown up” cells, and the sad fact is that many of them lost genetic material and potential in becoming so: Red blood cells don't have DNA altogether, while T cells have lost significant chunks of their DNA. Waiting to replace those differentiated cells are stem cells.

Stem cells, on the other hand, have more potential and are responsible for replacing and generating most cells in the body. Every day, in your bone marrow alone, they generate over 370 billion immune system cells. Your skin is constantly regrowing.

If differentiated cells are like adults, then the stem cells you have are like a 20 year old you. Capable of a lot, but not everything. You'll never become an Olympic level skater if you start at that age, for instance.

What this means for your body is as follows: while your stem cells can create and regenerate blood cells, they can't replace brain or heart cells. If you get cut, you can recover fully (well, almost fully. The tissue damage is in some ways permanent). But if you have a heart attack, your heart will never be as good as it was before.

Unfortunately, however, what we have can't do everything. If you suffer a heart attack, none of your stem cells will fully repair the damage. The same is true for damage to your brain, such as might be caused by a concussion or stroke.

The savvy reader might ask the following: then where did the brain and heart come from? The answer is relatively simple and explains a lot: When we were a fetus, the stem cells we had were even less differentiated or specific than the ones we currently have. They were indeed capable of turning into anything.

Embryonic stem cells can turn into any tissue whatsoever, which is why they hold such potential for researchers.

The use of fetuses for medical research is not an easy subject and raises very difficult questions. We all agree that there is nothing wrong with wasting living material that just has the potential for human life. Masturbation and menstruation, while certainly not dinner topics (at least in my house), fail to evoke moral outrage.

Does sperm fertilizing an egg instantly convey humanity? My personal opinion is no. But at the same time, I feel icked out by the idea of harvesting fetuses for scientific research. This conflict, for me at least, is made easier by the fact that many of the fetuses used for research are already discarded as a by product of in vitro fertilization.

As you can imagine, however, stem cell research goes far beyond the embryo. It is entirely possible that the stem cells we as adults have can be trained in a lab to turn into all sorts of tissue.

Some of the most exciting research going on today, and which I was a small part of, is based on the following idea: Why can't we turn a regular cell into a stem cell, as most cells do have all of their DNA? Doing so could create artificial stem cells that are as powerful as those from a fetus, and would totally circumvent most of the moral issues.

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David Gurevich writes about health and medical issues at HealthLifeandStuff.com.  He is an undergraduate at an Ivy League School where he has studied biology for several years and has been published on stem cells. He invites folks to join his AIDS Awareness Initiative where $750 in cash prizes will be given to blogger participants.

Stephen Colbert: Stem Cells This, Stem Cells That

In an episode of The Colbert Report that aired October 1, 2009, Stephen Colbert interviewed Dr. Francis Collins, Director of the National Institutes of Health.

During that interview, the two briefly discussed the future of stem cell research after Colbert asked how long it will take for stem cells to grow new body parts, because he'd like to put in for a "pair of crab claws."

Thanks to Tivo and the Internet, here is a partial transcript of that interview where the two talk about stem cell research...and crab claws

(P.S. A video showing the entire interview can be found at the bottom of this post):

Colbert: Stem cells is one of the forefronts of medicine.

Collins: Absolutely.

Colbert: How close are we to being able to use stem cells to grow new body parts? Because I'd like to put in for a pair of crab claws. Can't we do that? Because for years now doctor I've been hearing about stem cells this, stem cells that, we gotta have stem cells, we gotta fund stem cells cuz they are the be all do all. Is that just like, you know, "virtual reality" - it'll never actually happen?

Collins:  No, no, no. Stem cells are a very exciting frontier but realize medicine and its research takes time to go from that initial observation to something...

Colbert:  Why does it take so much time?

Collins:  Well, for instance, these cells that you can derive from your own skin that can basically become any part of your body that you happen to need, you probably want to be sure they're going to work so your crab claws don't become a complete exoskeleton.

Colbert: Kind of cool though, it would be kind of cool.

Collins:  It might be for a little while.

Colbert: I'd have a kitenous(?) armor shell.

Collins:  Yeah it would be hard to hug people, they wouldn't really want to get too close to you, so we gotta do the research steps in order to figure out what works and what doesn't work. There is, though, right now, a clinical trial underway for human embryonic stem cells to treat spinal cord injury and we're all very excited to see how that turns out, this is really starting to happen.

[Applause]

The Colbert Report	Mon - Thurs 11:30pm / 10:30c
Francis Collins
www.colbertnation.com
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Stem Cells Will Revolutionize Dental Care

Imagine a denture-free world. Its closer than you may think. Researchers at Nova Southeastern University in Florida are using adult stem cells to grow replacement teeth.

Cloning teeth as a new solution in health care will benefit the 45 million Americans who have problems with their dentures.

According to a report in the Sun-Sentinel, A 2009 NSU survey of dentists around the nation revealed that more than half thought that they would be using stem cell and tissue engineering therapies on their patients within the next decade. An overwhelming 96 percent of dentists believe the ability to regenerate and replace teeth and dental tissues is the future of dentistry, according to the survey.

So far, stem cells have been used to successfully regenerate teeth in the lab and in animals. It is said that mainstream dental treatments using stem cells will not be available for another decade to 50 years.

At the same time, the introduction of dental stem cell therapies can be sped up if more funds are devoted to research, something that might now readily happen in this uncertain economy.

So smile, the future looks bright for stem cell dental care.