12800 North Lake Shore Drive

Web: www.concordiabioethics.org

Rev. Dr. Kevin E. Voss, Director

Update from the Director, Kevin Voss, on "Ethical" Ways of Doing Embryonic Stem Cell Research

In August 2006, Advanced Cell Technology (ACT) of Worcester, Massachusetts, rocked the scientific and political worlds by announcing that they had recently pioneered a technique of making embryonic stem (ES) cells without killing embryos. Therefore, the assertion was made that this technique could avoid the moral difficulties many Christians have concerning embryonic stem cell research (ESCR) which destroys human embryos in order to harvest stem cells. The ACT research involved removing one cell from an early embryo. This cell would then be used to grow an ES cell line while yet leaving the rest of the embryo intact. The procedure sounds good at face value. Scientists would be able to grow the ES cells they desire while yet addressing ethical concerns about the beginning of human life. Unfortunately, this early report was overly optimistic.

There are three ethical concerns with this new research. (1) When a cell is removed from an early embryo at the 8-cell stage (called a morula), the embryo may be damaged. This technique, which is already used for a procedure called preimplantation genetic diagnosis (PGD), has been known to destroy about 1-10% of the embryos, depending on which source you choose to believe. We also do not know about the risks to children born from this procedure. It would stand to reason that there may be an increased chance of birth defects and premature births - and there may possibly be long-term negative effects like an increased predisposition to cancer or other diseases that appear later on in life.

(2) A few days after the research was announced, it came to light that the ACT scientists did not save any embryos with the procedure but, in fact, killed all 16 embryos in a determined effort to obtain an average of 6 cells from each. From the 91 cells taken from 16 embryos, the researchers managed to make only two stem cell lines. Even though ACT touted the procedure as a way to save embryos, it was clear that their concern for human life was a pretense. (3) The ACT research was carried out on 8-day embryos which were only a few days old. We know that embryo twinning can still feasibly occur up to 14 days of age. Conceivably, under the right conditions one could take that cell which was removed from the early embryo, put it into a woman's uterus, and have it grow like a normal fetus. That cell is at a very early age and does carry all the information necessary to produce a new human life. Therefore, I feel it is premature to say that the ACT research does not involve killing a human being.

No matter how you slice it, the claim by ACT that this new form of ESCR would spare us the ethical controversy over the use of embryonic stem cells appears to be incorrect at best, or purposefully misleading at worst. A human being begins at conception. Any attempt to "play God" by creating life for our selfish benefit violates the First and Fifth Commandments. I believe the Bible clearly teaches that human life begins at conception. I invite you to check out the Bible Study on Psalm 51:5 written by James Westendorf. You can find that study in God's Word for Life, published by God's Word to the Nations and Lutherans For Life.

Update on the Human Mind and PVS, by Kevin Voss

In case you missed it, I wanted to briefly comment on a very interesting study published in the journal Science (8 September 2006, volume 313). A woman who was classified as being in a persistent vegetative state (PVS) was tested with a procedure called a functional MRI in order to see if she was truly unaware as most doctors presume. Before the scan, the woman was told to imagine in her mind that she was playing a tennis match. Then she was asked to imagine walking through her home. To the surprise of the scientists, her brain scan lit up like a Christmas tree! The study reported: "Her neural responses were indistinguishable from those observed in healthy volunteers." This finding has significant implications for the way PVS patients are perceived and treated in the U.S. Until now, standard practice had been to withhold or withdraw life-giving therapies from PVS patients at the request of surrogate decision makers, as was done in the Terri Schiavo case.

Update on the Concordia Bioethics Institute (Abbreviated CBI)...

April 2007 Bioethics Conference To Be Held at Concordia University! Over 300 participants attended the last bioethics conference co-sponsored by the CBI in St. Louis. We hope to follow up on that success with a major bioethics conference to be held here at CUW next April. The theme is "Defending the Defenseless." We are working to finalize our slate of speakers, but they will be amazing! Keep checking the CBI website for details.

CBI Needs: Prayerfully consider supporting the work of the CBI! Tasks for the Bioethics Institute are endless if we had the resources! If you would like to help, log onto the website at www.concordiabioethics.org for more information and to make a donation through the CUW Online Gift System. Thrivent matching funds are available for donations to the CBI.

Update on CBI Events...

September and October, 2006: Dr. Voss is leading a five-week Bible Class at St. Paul Lutheran Church in Grafton, WI.

October 21, 2006: St. John Lutheran Church of Berlin, WI, is holding a workshop on end-of-life issues. Dr. Voss will lead the discussion as he speaks on "Christian Principles for End-of-Life Care." The event will run from 1 to 4 p.m. Admission is free. St. John Lutheran Church is located at 168 Mound Street in Berlin.

October 26, 2006: Dr. Voss appears at a panelist on Milwaukee Public TV's Fourth St. Forum program. The title of the program is "Will the Marriage Protection Amendment Make Us a Better Society?" Taping runs from 12 noon to 1:00 p.m., and the program will air on October 27 and 28 on Milwaukee channels 10 and 36. Later that day the CBI is hosting a meeting of the LCMS Sanctity of Life Committee at CUW's new Lakeview Conference Room. Ms. Maggie Karner, Prof. Robert Weise, Prof. John Pless, and Rev. James Lamb, among others, will be on hand for that meeting.

November 11, 2006: Dr. Voss is preaching and speaking at Immanuel Evangelical Lutheran Church Eagle, Nebraska. Topics to be discussed include end-of-life care, the science and ethics of fertility treatments, and embryonic stem cell research.

November 18 and 19, 2006: St. James Lutheran Church of Shawano, Wisconsin, is hosting a "Concordia Sunday." Dr. Voss will be the guest preacher.

January 10 through February 21, 2007: Dr. Voss is leading a Bioethics Bible class series at Trinity Lutheran Church, Freistadt, WI. Each class will be held on Wednesday evenings from 7:00 to 8:30 p.m. during the Epiphany season.

The Concordia Bioethics Institute offers a unique approach to bioethics that equips personal and professional decision making through spiritual guidance, competent teaching, insightful research, and needed resources.