In yet another extraordinary medical breakthrough, a group of British scientists claim to have been able to develop sperm cells from the stem cells of a human embryo. According to Dr, Karim Nayernia, professor of Stem cell biology at Newcastle University and lead scientist of the project, the sperm created from the stem cells have heads, tails and move in ways similar to male sperms. In effect, the sperm created in the laboratory have all the necessary qualities for creating life.
If true, the feat achieved by this group of medical researchers from Britain throws open thrilling possibilities on the entire process of creation of life as well as its attendant ethical questions. This is because if human sperm can be created from stem cells, then even female stem cells may be used to produce sperms. In other words very soon a day might come when men will no longer be needed to produce babies.
While such a scenario may still seem to be safely tucked away into the distant future, this much is true that with every success in stem cell research, newer possibilities in medical treatment open up. The British scientists who appear to have developed the sperm cells from stem cells claim that the feat will revolutionize the treatment of infertility.
Filed under Health by Kalyani Mookherji



