Claims that Sperm Cells Made of Stem Cells Not True

Stem cells seems to be a huge buzzword these days, what with the controversy over using them in research for treatments and preventive medicine for various diseases due to the moral aspect of using something that could potentially become human life and essentially destroying it.  All stem cells are destroyed in the course of research, since they are used as guinea pigs in various tests to figure out how to make things to further the human cause and treat disease that are otherwise hopeless.  Where you stand on that debate probably greatly depends on your religious background, since most people who have serious reservations about stem cell research have these reservations because of their faith.

Whatever your belief, there was some interesting news that came out a few weeks, or maybe even a few months ago (time is flying by this summer, it’s always so scary how quickly time goes).

There were scientists who claimed that they had created sperm cells out of stem cells.  This wasn’t a totally far cry if you think about it, since stem cells are sort of the basis for a lot of other types of cells and living organisms, which is exactly why they are considered so precious, they can be used in a variety of ways to create all types of cells and recreate damaged nerve cells, etc., which is why they are considered for very important in research against autoimmune and nervous system diseases which have very little options for treatment so far with out this stem cell research.

One of the vocal people you may recall that have campaigned for stem cell research is Michael J Foxx, because he has Parkinson’s disease, and many think that stem cell research can greatly benefit those with nervous system disorders that are otherwise pretty hopeless and don’t have much treatment available that actually improves the quality of life.

Apparently though, the fact they there were even spermatazoa created from stem cells in the first place was highly debatable, with some being critical because the study did not conclusively show that the resultant cells were identical and would act like sperm cells, so therefore could not be treated as such.  They did exhibit sperm cell qualities, however they questioned whether they would actually act as sperm cells and create life if they came in contact with a female egg.  The journal that originally published the information retracted the statement originally because they said the information had been plagiarized, although they still back up the research behind the reported finding.