Joan, the only thing that might do with a little updating is Dr. Levesque's
research.  I emailed him about a month ago to ask him why Dennis Turner
never had that second treatment he wanted and what happened to Phase II.
Six months ago he told me Phase II was stopped because their labs weren't up
to FDA standards, but this time he said it was due to lack of money.  He
didn't say anything about Turner.  I don't understand this reluctance, but
even though Turner was not cured, surely a great deal must have been learned
from his experience - like what doesn't work!!

I would urge all people who are interested in the issue of
fertilization/conception to read  Yvonne Perry's  RIGHT TO RECOVER

Ray

Rayilyn Brown
Board Member AZNPF
Arizona Chapter National Parkinson's Foundation
[log in to unmask]
----- Original Message -----
From: "Joan Blessington Snyder" <[log in to unmask]>
To: <[log in to unmask]>
Sent: Thursday, July 19, 2007 11:16 PM
Subject: stem cells-the science behind the rhetoric


i thought that now might be a good time to dust the ole paper and give it a
reprint and see if it still holds up...lemme know, ok?

Stem Cells, Cloning-the Science behind all of the Rhetoric



Out there on the political battlefield, sides have been taken, round after
round has been fired, causalities sustained by both sides, but in my view,
everything is obliterated by a shroud of smoke which fills the air and makes
it almost impossible to think straight. The cause of this smokescreen is
language: words that are as powerful as flamethrowers and words that ignite
fierce reactions from both sides.



 I am Joan Snyder. Many of you know me as a wife and mom and a parishioner
at St. Edward Catholic Church in Chillicothe, IL. Still others know me as a
51 year old woman who has been diagnosed with Parkinson's Disease for 13
years; an activist and a fundraiser. Those who know me at all, know that for
years I have been walking a tightrope between the controversial, moral and
ethical problems that have surrounded those with my disease, Alzheimer's
(which killed my father), ALS, spinal chord injury, heart disease, diabetes
and other devastating diseases that could possibly be cured with the stem
cell research and the cloning going on now in the science community.



I am hoping that medical research has finally given us an answer which will
ultimately allow me to feel both that I have not compromised my Catholic
Pro-Life beliefs nor have I turned my back on the many thousands of fellow
PWP's (People With Parkinson's) whom I have gotten to know in person and on
the web-looking at them as if in a mirror, watching their slow, downward
progression mimic mine.



 Let us begin with definitions of some of the scariest words out there:

STEM CELLS-Undifferentiated, primitive cells with the ability both to
multiply and to differentiate into specific kinds of cells. Stem cells hold
the promise of allowing researchers to grow specialized cells or tissue,
which could be used to treat injuries or disease. There are different types
of stem cells and different ways of harvesting (gathering these precious
cells). I will talk about these differences later.



CLONING-Cloning is the creation of multiple copies of a single molecule,
cell or virus. There are many types of cloning, most of which are now
commonplace in science. Cloning has allowed scientists to develop powerful
new drugs and to produce insulin and useful bacteria in the lab. It also
allows researchers to track the origins of biological weapons, catch
criminals and free innocent people and produce more plants and animals to an
undernourished world population.

REPRODUCTIVVE CLONING-is the use of cloning technology to create a child. It
entails taking a fertilized egg and implanting it into a woman's uterus. I
find the entire concept abhorrent, immoral and completely unethical. I think
that this kind of research should be shut down and it is something that
should be banned right away.

THERAPEUTIC CLONING /SCNT (SOMATIC CELL NUCLEAR TRANSFER)-this involves
removing the contents of an UNFERTILIZED  egg cell, replacing it with the
nucleus of a "somatic cell" (a skin, heart, or a nerve cell for example) and
stimulating this cell to begin dividing. Once the cell begins dividing, stem
cells can be extracted 5-6 days later and used for research. SCNT does NOT
utilize a fertilized egg and it does NOT  produce an embryo to be implanted
in a woman's womb therefore SCNT does NOT produce a child.

The words "stem cell" create a powerful, explosive reaction in people on
both sides of the abortion issue. The fact is that stem cells are in our own
blood, fat tissues, and perhaps many other parts of our bodies. These are
adult stem cells which have already differentiated themselves into the kind
of cell that they have become. It is thought that  with further research,
these may be part of a cure for disease.but no one knows for sure.

There are also stem cells that can be harvested from umbilical cord blood
which is routinely discarded after a baby is born. Around the nation, cord
blood banks are being set up to help doctors and families donate their
umbilical cord for research.

Dr. Michel Levesque has been doing work which uses the patient's own neural
stem cells. He removed neural stem cells from the patient's brain, cultured
them in the lab for months to produce several million stem cells and then
implanted them into the part of the brain that is affected by the lack of
dopamine producing cells. Thus far, his work holds tremendous promise and
then there is the research being conducted right here in Peoria by  Dr. Rick
Weber who is an Associate Professor of Immunopharmacology and Microbiology
here at the University of Illinois College of Medicine, who is working on
his project which involves activated leukacytes utilizing the white blood
cells of the patient's own blood.

The problem lies herein-at the very mention of the words stem cells, people
tend to forget that there are many kinds of stem cells out there that need
to be researched. Embryonic stem cells are the flashpoint that both sides of
the abortion issue are reacting to when stem cells are mentioned. These must
be harvested from the embryos which are aborted. I cannot reconcile taking a
life for giving a life. There are serious trains of thought being argued
about the "leftover" embryos that are created by a couple using in-vitro
fertilization and which are routinely destroyed by clinics and hospitals
each day. It is at this point that the clouds of uncertainty roll in:

Which is more pro-life: to allow the continued destruction of these embryos
which will never become children because they are destined never to be
transplanted in a woman's womb? Or is it more pro-life to use these
discarded embryos to start new stem cell lines for research thus giving them
meaning and dignity?. I have to admit to not knowing the answer to this
thorny and moralistic hot potato, but I can tell you that years of watching
this disease take my friends away, little by little.sometimes makes me
question my own beliefs.

So, this brings us back to the issue of cloning. I maintain that there is a
world of difference between reproductive cloning-something which should be
banned immediately and therapeutic cloning. Therapeutic cloning offers great
promise for curing deadly and terrible diseases. Therapeutic cloning saves
lives; it doesn't create lives.

I'm hoping that I have helped somewhat in clearing up some of the
misconceptions and maybe hold out some hope that  there may be some common
ground where the pro-life and the pro-choice people can come together in a
combined effort to eradicate the devastation and the suffering of so many.



joan blessington snyder  55/17'
www.calipso-pd,org
'Hang tough.......no way through it but to do it."
Chris  in the Morning       Northern Exposure



























































































































































































































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