Stem cells have the ability to transform into any type of cell. These cells can divide and also replenish other cells in the body, such as muscle cells, brain cells, red blood cells, or they can simply remain as stem cells. Stem cells are able to replicate even after long periods of dormancy. They naturally repair damaged tissues and can be experimentally induced to work with particular tissues and organs (NIH, 2013). There are three types of stem cells. Embryonic stem cells which are taken from a fertilized egg, somatic stem cells are completely mature cells taken from an adult and more recently created pluripotent stem cells which are those which can be induced through experimentation to take on specific functions (NIH, 2013). The history of using stem cells in experimentation dates back to 1998 with Dr. James Thompson. Thompson, a biologist at the University of Wisconsin, discovered that embryonic stem cells isolated from other cell types transformed into that type. This has led to speculation that stem cells could be used to advance medicine because they could cure injuries and diseases (AAAS, 2012). The conflict surrounding stem cell research is, from an ethical perspective, whether it is good or bad. Most Americans support the possibilities of medical progress, thus saving thousands of lives. Opponents believe it is against morality to destroy embryos because they are people. Those against stem cell research also say that it leads to many deaths in the process of clinical trials and trials and could potentially lead to the cloning of human beings. The issue has caused widespread political debate due to ethics. The Dickey-Wick...... middle of paper......//www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC1083849/Pollock, J. (2014). Ethical dilemmas and decisions in criminal justice (8 ed.). Belmont, CA: Wadsworth, Cengage Learning.Reaves, J. (2001, July 11). The great debate on stem cell research. Time, retrieved from http://www.time.com/time/health/article/0,8599,167245,00.htmlSchwartz, S. D. (2012). Embryonic stem cell trials for macular degeneration: a preliminary report. PubMed, retrieved from http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/22281388Stem Cell Research 11 References Siegel, A. (2008). Ethics of stem cell research. The Stanford Encyclopedia of Philosophy, Edward N. Zalta (ed.), Retrieved from http://plato.stanford.edu/archives/fall2008/entries/stem-cells/.Vatican science project. (2011, November 21). America,205(16), 4. Retrieved from http://web.ebscohost.com.proxy.itt-tech.edu/ehost/delivery?sid=cd02803c-d2c1-401c