Believe it or not, some small groups of humans spend their time constructively. They follow paths that benefit all of us or many of us. We call them inventors. They should be honored by society. They are such a minority, yet they give the greatest benefit to the rest of us of any group I am aware of.
Geron is a company that manipulates cells in hopes of helping people with spinal cord injuries. Of course, because we live in a society that is only mostly free, the company has to wait for federal approval to test stem cell injections on willing patients. Seems to me that the patients should be the ones to make the final decision about whether or not they should be allowed to receive stem cell injections. I’m not quite sure why the federal government gets to act as intermediary here.
For its test, Geron proposes to turn human embryonic stem cells into the precursors for specialized nerve cells, called oligodendrocyte progenitor cells. Surgeons then would inject the cells into the spinal injury with the help of a special stabilizing frame the company has developed.
If everything goes as planned, the progenitor cells would help form new axons and also turn into oligodendrocytes, which help form an insulating sheath for the axons, called myelin.
The test probably would involve a few dozen patients, all of whom would have irreversible spinal injuries. Initially, the idea would be to merely determine if the injections were safe. But Geron executives hope additional tests would demonstrate the procedure’s effectiveness in repairing damaged axons and restoring motor function in less severely injured people.
The 21st century offers much hope for vast quality of life improvements worldwide. If we can stop bickering for five minutes, great things can be accomplished. Evolve, people.