Embryo Organisms in the early stages of growth and development. In animals, embryos are characterized by the cleavage of the fertilized eggs to many cells, the laying down of the three germ layers, and formative steps in organ

if one concluded that an embryo was not a person yet, the embryo could still as a human embryo warrant more respect and care than mere tissue. The embryo is potentially associated with a human person in the future. Would proper care for an

Encourage an Increase in Embryo Destruction and Abortions? Although this is a quantitative question applied to a qualitative ethical concern, we intuitively sense that the public impact of such science is morally relevant. We rightly fear

suggested. But what of embryos created by embryo splitting or by nuclear transfer, the two types of cloning , the first like identical twins but forced in a dish, the second like Dolly . What do we think of when we think of such embryos? Are

ethical status of human embryonic stem cells partly hinges on the question of whether they should be characterized as embryos or specialized bodily tissue. Although the answer to this question will be less important to those who believe that

the deliberate creation of embryos for this purpose, while others would only permit the use of so-called “spare embryos” remaining from infertility procedures. The second and third source noted above (i.e., embryonic stem cells

cell mass of preimplantation embryos (ES cells ) or from the gonadal tissue of aborted fetuses (EG cells ). Both of these sources involve extraction and manipulation of cells from human embryos or fetuses. This raises issues of fundamental

of a functioning organism. Embryonic stem cells (ES cells ), derived from a very early embryo, and embryonic germ cells (EG cells), collected from fetal tissue at a somewhat later stage of development, have particular promise for a wide range

cells because they are not embryos." It further reports that appropriations law (P.L. 105-277, section 511,112 STAT, 2681-386) prohibits funds "for the creation of a human embryo or embryos for research purposes; or research in which a

entire conversation about embryonic stem cell research, which addresses the question quite as if the embryos we contemplate using as source material had suddenly been offloaded from space ships. In reality of course, the possibility and