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StemCellBasicsNew.pdf
“Stem Cell Basics” from the Stem Cell Information website of the National Institutes of Health.
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114 K
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U.S._Denies_Patent_for_a_Too-Human_Hybrid.pdf
“US Denies Patent for a Too-Human Hybrid” by Rick Weiss, Washington Post, Sunday February 13, 2005.
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90 K
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GeneTherapyDeafnessCure.pdf
“Gene Therapy is First Deafness Cure” by Andy Coghlan, New Scientist.com, Feburary 14, 2005.
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73 K
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auditory_hair_cell_Nature_Medicine.pdf
“Auditory Hair Cell Replacement and Hearing Improvement by 'Atoh1' Gene Therapy in Deaf Mammals” by M. Izumikawa, et al., Nature Medicine, February 13, 2005.
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1.0 M
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Wired11.11RegrowYourOwn-001.pdf
“Regrow Your Own” by Jennifer Kahn, Wired Magazine, November 2003.
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80 K
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TracingLifesCircuitry.pdf
“Tracing Life’s Circuitry” by Elizabeth Pennisi, Science, December 12, 2003.
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324 K
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ScientificAmericanTermsofEngagement-001.pdf
“Terms of Engagement” by Sally Lehrman, Scientific American, June 2003.
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97 K
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Understanding the complexity of living systems and “what makes them tick” is a daunting task. Although there will remain great gaps in our knowledge for several years to come, the engineering of replacement tissues and organs is proceeding rapidly. We already see worldwide debate over the use of genetically modified (GM) plant crops, in which the desire to feed the world’s undernourished with GM foods is balanced by fears that we do not know enough about the safety of GM crops and/or their impact on the world’s ecosystems
In the case of regenerative medicine, how do you see the future debate shaping up? Scientists are already in the process of developing technologies that will make it possible to clone humans, grow replacement organs and tissues, and tinker with human genomes to help alleviate human suffering. Should we be concerned that many of these advances might be possible even without fully understanding the underlying complexity?
Given what you have read as part of this assignment and what you may have seen in the popular press, do you think medical advances in these areas – though arguably in their infancy - are outpacing society’s ability to deal with the likely ethical, social, religious and economic implications? If so, where should the lines be drawn and who should decide?
The basic science of “morphogenesis” and the study of so-called model systems (e.g., flies, worms, frogs) have led to some spectacular successes that have influenced subsequent discoveries of importance to human diseases and their diagnosis and treatment. Do you see benefit in the study of these and other more “esoteric” biological systems even if they are unlikely to hold the promise of impacting human health or bringing a product to market?
Morphogenesis and Regenerative Medicine Institute at UVA
Stem Cell Information at www.nih.gov
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Prof. Carl L. Berg, M.D. is Associate Professor in Medicine, Director of Hepatology and Medical Director of Liver Transplantation at the University of Virginia. He received his B.A magna cum laude ...
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Prof. Douglas W. DeSimone is a Professor in the Department of Cell Biology at the University of Virginia School of Medicine and Associate Director of the Morphogenesis and Regenerative Medicine ...
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