Follow many Studies show that one in three pregnancies has a miscarriage, and one in 33 babies is born with a birth defect caused by an embryo incorrectly forming in the womb. Studying how embryos develop can help us find ways to reduce these numbers. In 2022, we’ll see advances in this research thanks to embryonic, stem-cell-based structures that can be grown in the lab.
Stem cells offers an efficient method to study early embryonic development. They can be grown in the lab in large quantities and can be boosted to generate many types of cells, including brain, blood, bone and muscle.
Recently, some researchers have found a way to fuse stem cells together into tiny 3D balls, facilitating the creation of small embryo-like structures. They are rudimentary at the moment – structures are mutable, they are inefficient to create, and cannot be further developed. Next year, we’ll likely see improvements, with more advanced embryo-like structures created from stem cells. And we can also see scientists using these models to investigate specific issues, such as how embryos implant in the uterus, how organs begin to develop, or how embryos secure that the cells are in the right position.
Traditionally, such research has been difficult to do with human embryos. Parents using IVF can donate their excess embryos, but regulation (internationally accepted and followed by law in the UK) prevents researchers from culturing them beyond 14 day. This makes it impossible to directly study the development of the human embryo as it changes from a cluster of cells to a structure with the organization of a rudimentary organism — when it is two to four weeks old. age. The International Association for Stem Cell Research, which represents researchers in the field, has called for a public dialogue about whether this limit should be changed. It is proposed that the culture of human embryos should be extended on a case-by-case basis. How regulators will react to this issue remains to be seen.
Meanwhile, embryonic stem-cell-like models may reduce some of the need to use “real” human embryos. They will allow researchers to perform precise studies of embryonic development, seeing how they respond when a gene is mutated, such as when they are exposed to dangerous chemicals. dangerous. Because they are made from stem cells, they could even be made by taking blood or skin samples from patients with birth defects themselves and turning the clock back to an embryo-like state. This can help us figure out how the defect occurs, and maybe even take steps to reduce the incidence of such disorders in the future.
The development of embryo-like models will raise many new ethical questions. In addition to their ability to move down a slippery slope to cloning, stem cell-based embryo models are beginning to blur the lines between what we consider human or not. Would an early human embryo, when it was only a small group of 16 cells, be more valuable if it came from the union of sperm and egg? Or is it like it was taken from stem cells in a lab? Does the status quo normally applied to human embryos also apply to groups of cells, even in arrangements that may only vaguely reflect elements of actual embryonic development?
As we move further towards models that can alleviate the devastating conditions faced at the beginning of life, we will also find ourselves as a society challenged to ask the big questions, including the basics of what it means to be human.
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