Foreword	5
	Introduction	7
	Contents	10
	Contributors	12
	The Moral Status of Human Embryos with Special Regard to Stem Cell Research and Therapy	16
	1.1 Introduction	16
	1.2 The Topic	17
	1.3 Embryo Development and the Stem Cell Field	18
	1.4 Philosophical and Theological Traditions	21
	1.4.1 Personhood	21
	1.4.2 Potentiality	22
	1.4.3 Biological Continuity	23
	1.4.4. Graduality	23
	1.4.5 Individuality	24
	1.4.6 God’s Creation	24
	1.5 Normativity and Terminology	25
	1.5.1 Human Life	25
	1.5.2 Human Being	25
	1.5.3 Dignity	26
	1.5.4 Value of Human Life	26
	1.5.5 Respect	27
	1.5.6 Knowledge as Ethical Value	27
	1.5.7 Health	28
	1.5.8 Quality of Life	28
	1.6 Medical Progress and Respect for Embryos	28
	1.7 Conclusion	32
	Part I	34
	Stem Cells: Sources and Clinical Applications	35
	2.1 Introduction	35
	2.2 Stem Cell Definition and Potency	36
	2.3 Somatic Stem Cells	36
	2.3.1 Stem Cells in Blood and Bone Marrow	37
	2.3.2 Stem Cells in Skin and Intestine	37
	2.3.3 Stem Cells in the Brain	38
	2.3.4 Stem Cells in the Heart	38
	2.3.5 Stem Cells in the Pancreas	38
	2.3.6 Stem Cells in the Eye	39
	2.3.7 Stem Cells in the Lung	39
	2.3.8 Stem Cells in the Ear	39
	2.3.9 Stem Cells in the Liver	39
	2.3.10 Stem Cells in the Skeletal Muscle	40
	2.4 Embryonic Stem Cells	40
	2.4.1 hES Cells	40
	2.4.2 ES Stem Cell Research	41
	2.4.3 Somatic Cell Nuclear Transfer (SCNT)	42
	2.4.4 Induced Pluripotency (iPS)	42
	2.5 Prospects and Controversies in the Stem Cell Field	43
	References	44
	Alternative Means to Obtain Pluripotent Stem Cells	45
	3.1 Supernumerary Embryos	46
	3.2 ‘Dead’ Embryos	47
	3.3 Genetically Defect Embryos	47
	3.4 Single Blastomers	47
	3.5 Somatic Cell Nuclear Transfer (SCNT)	48
	3.6 Parthenogenesis	49
	3.7 De-Differentiation of Specialized Cells from Adults	49
	3.8 Pluripotent Stem Cells in Newborns and Adults	50
	3.9 The Alternative Sources and the Future Development	50
	References	51
	Neurogenesis and Potential Use of Stem Cells from Adult Human Brain	54
	4.1 Introduction	54
	4.2 The Complexity of the Human Brain	55
	4.2.1 Brain Diseases and Injuries	56
	4.3 Tissue Regeneration	56
	4.3.1 Regeneration and Neurogenesis in the Brain	57
	4.3.2 Regeneration in the Adult Human Brain	59
	4.4 Strategies for Neuronal Replacement	60
	4.4.1 Endogenous Repair in the Adult Brain	61
	4.4.2 Transplantation to the Adult Brain	62
	4.5 Conclusion	63
	References	64
	Can We Use Human Embryonic Stem Cells to Treat Brain and Spinal Cord Injury and Disease?	67
	5.1 Introduction	67
	5.2 Spinal Cord Injury	69
	5.2.1 What is the Spinal Cord Made of?	70
	5.2.2 What Happens?	73
	5.2.3 Other Types of Spinal Injury and Disease Relevant for Stem Cell- Based Treatment Strategies	74
	5.2.4 Current Status of Efforts to Treat Spinal Cord Injury and Disease with Embryonic Stem Cells	74
	5.3 Parkinson’s Disease	77
	5.4 Alternatives to Cell Replacement	79
	5.5 Summary	80
	References	81
	Stem Cells, Embryos and Ethics: Is There a Way Forward?*	83
	6.1 Introduction	84
	6.2 White Paper	85
	6.2.1 Culture of Pluripotent Cells from Embryos that are Considered Organismically Dead	86
	6.2.2 Culture of Pluripotent Cells from Single Blastomere Extraction from Living Embryos ( Embryo Biopsy)	86
	6.2.3 Culture of Pluripotent Cells Through the Direct Production of Specifically Engineered Constructs Lacking the Character of Living Embryos – Altered Nuclear Transfer	87
	6.2.4 Production of Pluripotent Cells by the Direct Reprogramming of Somatic Cells ( Dedifferentiation)	88
	6.3 Practical Implications of the Proposals	89
	6.4 Moral Meaning of Emerging Life	90
	6.5 Altered Nuclear Transfer	91
	6.6 Failures of Fertilization	92
	6.7 Systems Biology	94
	6.8 Cdx2	94
	6.9 Advantages of ANT	97
	6.10 Conclusion	98
	References	99
	Part II	100
	An Intercultural Perspective on Human Embryonic Stem Cell Research1	101
	7.1 Seven World Regions: An Overview Europe	102
	7.2 The United Nations Debate about Human Cloning	106
	7.3 HESC Research Policies in the United States	110
	7.4 Philosophical and Ethical Issues Surrounding hESC Research	111
	7.5 Religious Perspectives on hESC Research, Including Research Cloning	114
	7.6 The Quest for the Best Analogy to Our Issue	115
	7.7 Summary	117
	References	118
	Human Embryo Research: The European Perspective	120
	8.1 Introduction	120
	8.2 Sketching the Situation in the EU	121
	8.3 EGE, CDBI, CEC, and EC Research Policy	123
	8.4 An Alternative Perspective?	126
	References	129
	Stem Cells, Pluralism and Moral Empathy	130
	9.1 Introduction	130
	9.2 Long Live Pluralism?	131
	9.3 Two Levels of Pluralism	133
	9.3.1 ‘Pluralism without Relativism’	133
	9.3.2 ‘Relativism without Subjectivism’	133
	9.4 Value Pluralism and Systemic Pluralism	134
	9.4.1 Value Pluralism	135
	9.4.2 Systemic Pluralism	136
	9.5 Moral Empathy versus Moralism	137
	9.6 Moralism as Forgetfulness	139
	9.7 Embryos: Which Values are at Stake?	140
	9.8 Final Remarks	142
	References	143
	Part III	144
	The Potentiality Argument and Stem Cell Research	145
	10.1 Introduction	145
	10.2 Arguments in Ethics	146
	10.3 Status of the Embryo	146
	10.4 The Potentiality Argument	148
	10.5 Potentiality and Other Factors	150
	10.6 Potentiality and Rights	151
	10.7 Priorities, Social Justice	152
	10.8 Alternatives	153
	References	154
	Can the Distinction between the Moral and the Descriptive Support a Full Moral Standing of an Embryo?*	156
	11.1 Introduction	156
	11.2 A Traditional View of the Normative and the Descriptive	157
	11.3 Critical Comments on the Traditional View on the Normative and Descriptive	158
	11.4 A Problem with the Metaphysical Argument: Created in the Image of God	159
	11.5 Which Type of Potentiality?	160
	11.6 Morton White on the Normative and the Descriptive	162
	11.7 Thick Concepts	164
	11.8 Thick Concepts and the Method of Reflective Equilibrium	166
	11.9 Can Thick Concepts Be Avoided?	167
	11.10 Prima Facie or Everything-Considered General Principles?	168
	11.11 Prima Facie Principles and Natural Properties12	169
	11.12 Graduality of Ethical Considerations	170
	11.13 The Application of this to the Moral Status of a Human Embryo	170
	11.14 Graduality and/or Created in the Image of God?	172
	References	173
	The Beginning of Individual Human Life	174
	References	181
	Embryonic Stem Cell Research – Arguments of the Ethical Debate in Germany	183
	13.1 Introduction	183
	13.2 Aims and Means of Research with ES Cell Lines	184
	13.3 The Restrictive and the Gradualist Position	185
	13.4 Ethical Assessment of the Different Ways of Generating Embryos Used for the Isolation of ES Cells	187
	13.5 The ‘Protection-Worthiness’ of the Embryo – Further Considerations	188
	13.6 Outlook	190
	References	190
	The Question of Human Cloning in the Context of the Stem Cell Debate	192
	14.1 Introduction	192
	14.2 Three Argumentational Fallacies	193
	14.3 Reproductive Cloning?	195
	14.4 Excursus: Gift, Not Property	199
	14.5 ‘Therapeutic’ or ‘Research’ Cloning?	199
	References	206
	Part IV	208
	Stem Cells from Human Embryos for Research? The Theological Discussion Within Christianity	209
	15.1 Introduction	209
	15.2 The Orthodox Churches	210
	15.3 The Roman Catholic Church	213
	15.4 The Protestant Churches	215
	15.5 The Theological-Ethical Argumentation	220
	15.6 Conclusion	223
	References	223
	Theological Arguments in the Human Stem Cell Debate: A Critical Evaluation	225
	16.1 Introduction	225
	16.2 The Role of Theological Arguments in Debates on Bioethical Issues	226
	16.3 Different Argumentative Strategies in Theological Contributions to Bioethics	229
	16.4 Theological Arguments in the Stem Cell Debate: Differences and Uniting Perspectives	231
	16.4.1 A Conservative Roman Catholic Voice: Richard M. Doerflinger	231
	16.4.2 A Moderate Roman Catholic Voice: Lisa Sowle Cahill	233
	16.4.3 A Conservative Protestant Voice: Gilbert Meilaender	235
	16.4.4 A Liberal Protestant Voice: Ted Peters	236
	16.5 Conclusion	237
	References	238
	Human Embryos and Embryonic Stem Cells – Ethical Aspects	240
	17.1 Autonomous Morality Within the Context of Christian Faith: Remarks About the Relationship of Philosophical Ethics and Theology	240
	17.2 Ethical Questions Raised by Research Using Human Embryos and Embryonic Stem Cells	242
	17.2.1 Ethical Problems Pertaining to the Extraction and/or Creation of Embryonic Stem Cells	242
	17.2.2 Impossibility of Separating the Reproduction and Research Dimension of the Cloning Procedure	244
	17.2.3 The Researcher’s Burden of Proof Concerning the Moral Status of Human Embryos and Embryonic Stem Cells	246
	17.2.4 Explication, High Priority and Reachability of Therapeutic Research Goals	248
	17.2.5 Prospects for Success and Lack of Alternatives in Research Using Embryos and Embryonic Stem Cells	250
	17.2.6 Ethical Assessment and Procedural Limitations	252
	References	252
	Index	254