New York City, N.Y., Oct 30, 2011 / 16:35 pm
A new volume written by global scholars in science and bioethics touches on the moral issues surrounding human cells being used for experimentation.
“The central question of this book is whether or not particular cell entities of human origin ought to be considered human beings,” said the Social Trends Institute, a Spain and U.S.-based ethics foundation that commissioned the work.
“The answer is crucial for making moral decisions for or against research and experimentation.”
Released in August, “Is This Cell a Human Being? Exploring the Status of Embryos, Stem Cells and Human-Animal Hybrids” (Springer, $139) is the result of a 2009 meeting of several experts from around the world who each wrote on the ethical considerations of human cell use.