There is a disturbing trend where scientists with pulled government funding are sourcing their financial support from other agencies. Where even the government is saying “no” to particular DNA and stem cell research, communities of researchers are still moving forward with programs that are, well, quiet the ethical worry.
MIT Technology Review first published this reality. In their report they document the growing move towards ignoring peers in order to prove them wrong. It’s an echo of past times: I believe I am advancing the species therefore I am right in my actions…Hitler’s scientific experiments 101 lessons on Jews, Gypsies and anyone else who didn’t fit his human race criteria.
This time, the research is a little more disturbing. Research involving the God-playing making of “human-animal chimeras,” saw a reversal of policy in the United States almost unprecedented. The National Institutes of Health had announced that until scientific and social implications were fully reviewed, then development of these chimeras couldn’t be supported. “They will not fund” such research, the NIH states.
The debate surrounds the concept of blurring the lines between humans and animals. By altering DNA, human tissue is grown inside pigs and sheep with an end goal of creating and harvesting organs needed for human recipients.
Since the imposed funding ban, some U.S. research centers have still moved ahead with their plans. Private companies such as California’s State Stem-cell Agency, and the U.S. military ($1.4 million) have supplied the funds to propel such studies.
The NIH’s concern that the animal’s “cognitive state” could be affected as a result of human brain cells, isn’t so far-fetched. The unpublished research of such procedures where pig-human and sheep-human pregnancies have been induced by science, was discussed openly at a presentation made at NIH’s Maryland campus.
“We are not near the island of Dr. Moreau, but science moves fast,” NIH ethicist David Resnik discussed. “The specter of an intelligent mouse stuck in a laboratory somewhere screaming ‘I want to get out’ would be very troubling to people.”
The connotation of “chimera” usually forms as “monster.” But derived from Greek mythology, the word means part lion, goat and snake. Creating a chimera, in this instance, is to discover an end product to produce vital organs for desperately ill people.
“My view is that the contribution of human cells is going to be minimal, maybe 3 percent, maybe 5 percent,” says Pablo Ross, a veterinarian and developmental biologist at the University of California. “But what if they contributed to 100 percent of the brain? What if the embryo that develops is mostly human? It’s something that we don’t expect, but no one has done this experiment, so we can’t rule it out.”
Cutting edge technology doesn’t make it right. Just because you can, doesn’t mean you should. Funding has been pulled for a reason. It’s an age old pearl of wisdom.
This article (Chimeras are Real – if a Scientific Community has their way. DNA Funding Bans Ignored) is a free and open source. You have permission to republish this article under a Creative Commons license with attribution to the author AnonWatcher and AnonHQ.com.
lol part lion, part snake, part goat… and why this one on he pic has wings??^^ are these lion-, goat- or snake-wings? 😀 😉
I believe the writer forgot to mention part eagle. Chimera’s were often described to have the wings of an eagle as well.
In your own words: “Creating a chimera, in this instance, is to discover an end product to produce vital organs for desperately ill people.”
But thanks for comparing us scientists to Hitler. It’s always appreciated.
Its not to be describe us to Hitler, its because Hitler has had some of the most advanced, and complex experiments the world has ever seen and they meant it in such a way to show the complex nature we have in science.
actually, I’m pretty sure they meant it in such a way as to explain his very unethical and sometimes horrific experiments on human subjects, regardless of their willingness…. which is what Hitler’s experiments were, regardless of the advancements achieved. just sayin’
i see this as helping humans to further master our planet and the survival of humans or hybrids. we have to know we humans will not reign forever. An when faced with extiction or become hybrids, we’re gonna pick hybrid. Sure only the well off will survive but average or poor joe will die out but the race will survive. of course i see religoustards will spout this is all “satanic” but since they wouldnt do it, theyll be wiped out right? lol.
Well if this did happen, this would possibly begin a new religion based upon being a hybrid. Humans tend to latch onto things easily and if being a hybrid becomes a religion, the possibility of them conflicting with Christianity and Muslims (And multiple other religions) would be quite high. I will say this is only speculations on my part and possibly would never happen.
The only real objection i have with this, is that it would let the average life expectancy rise even further in the west… and won’t help the rest of the world anything. If this would be the way to make organ transplantation cheaper for people in the third world, and making it possible for people to achieve better life standards, so they’ll have less children and we would solve one of our greatest problems: the future of our natural resources.
what is the issue with just letting people die? that’s natural.. we can’t live forever and we not getting off this rock alive anyway so lets help people to pass with dignity not prolong the inevitable
Rilly rilly the reason ppl age is because of the shortening of talemeers every time a cell divides its talemeers shrink with stem cells there as young ass we can go other then sperm and egg cells that start with perfect talemeers so if some one would figure out how to increes talemeers throuout your body ppl could be 30 and have the talemeers of an infant with repeated injections ppl could live forever like in Jupiter ascending