Abstract
This paper investigates the probability that without effective intervention, umbilical cord banking will no better serve certain population groups, particularly minorities, any more effectively than existing bone marrow technology. It looks at how umbilical cord banking is more and more becoming a 'hot topic' among medical communities the world over and how recent technological advances have enabled scientists to bank umbilical cord blood as a source of hematopoietic stem cells for both pediatric and adult patients with certain blood related disorders.

Outline
Introduction
Significance of the Study
Literature Review
Benefits Cord Banking
Cord Blood Vs. Bone Marrow Transplantation
The Effects of Intervention
Summary of Preliminary Literature Review
Methods
Possible/Anticipated Results

From the Paper
"Ballen, et. Al (2002) performed a study comparing the racial composition of five member cord blood banks of the National Marrow Donor Program. The study examined cord blood and bone marrow donors using self reported racial designations and questionnaire, and showed that cord blood banks in California, Florida and Massachusetts recruited a lower percentage of minorities than the bone marrow centers in the same areas. However in New York and Colorado the recruitment for minorities was the same in both cord banks and marrow centers. However, the study also showed that in all of the centers examined, cord blood banks generally recruited a lower percentage of minorities than "those delivering at the respective hospitals" with the authors concluding that the problems of insufficient minority recruitment with regard to cord blood banking "Has not yet been solved" (Ballen, et. Al, 2002:1247)."

Tags:stem, cells, hospitals, donor, registries

Abstract
The paper discusses the new trend of banking personal umbilical cord blood intended for private use in the United Kingdom. The paper looks at the position of supporters and opponents and shows how this ethical controversy touches upon many issues raised by a national healthcare system. The paper suggests two solutions and maintains that a balance between public and private funds must always be negotiated, even in a system of socialized medicine.

From the Paper
"According to Leroy C Edozien of the British Medical Journal, increasing numbers of women in maternity units across the United Kingdom are requesting doctors to collect and preserve their umbilical cord blood when delivering their babies to enable the women to privately store the umbilical cord stem cells for possible transfusions in the future. "Umbilical cord blood is rich in stem cells that can be used to treat patients with abnormal haematopoietic cell lines, childhood leukemia, or metabolic diseases. Bone marrow is used for this purpose, but cord blood is cheaper and easier to obtain and less likely to trigger a harmful immune response or rejection in the recipient" (Edozien 2006). The NHS of Britain has been banking donated cord blood since 1996 in public banks operated by the National Blood Service that are voluntarily and anonymously donated to be used for general purposes in the larger population."

Tags:stem, cells, NHS, storage

Abstract
Umbilical cord blood offers great hope for the future of stem cell research and use. This paper examines the potential of these types of stem cells in order to demonstrate how stem cells from umbilical cord blood can help scientists solve the ethical debate and provide sick patients with hope for life.

Paper Outline
Introduction
Stem Cell Background
About Umbilical Cord Stem Cells
Umbilical Cord Blood Process
The Great Stem Cell Debate
Conclusion
Works Cited

From the Paper
"Estimations regarding the need for a given cord blood sample vary. One estimate of a child needing his or her own cord blood stem cells is 1:10,000 (Wolf, 2002). Another places the odds at 1:1000 to 1:2000. The probability of use varies depending on individual circumstances. Disturbing statistics reveal that every year there are about 8,000 new cases of cancer in children under the age of 15. These children could potentially benefit from the use of cord blood stem cells, so perhaps expectant parents should make the effort to donate their newborn's cord blood or store it for their own family's potential use."

Tags:leukocytes, marrow, cancer, abortion

Abstract
This paper relates that implanted stem cells used to repair or replace damaged tissues are less likely to be rejected by the body's immune system than other foreign cells. The author points out that germ line cells and adult stem cells are less versatile than embryonic stem cells, which can develop into every type of tissue found in an adult; however, the processes that control this development are at present not fully understood. The paper discusses that BioMark International, a privately funded Biotech Group, provides access to a unique method of Cord Blood Stem Cell (CBSC)processing by which CBSCs are derived from the umbilical cords from natural full term births of consenting mothers, all of whom have been tested according to standards set by the American Association of Blood Banks .

From the Paper
"In May 2004, Nancy Reagan, whose husband former President Ronald Reagan was at the time suffering the advanced stages of Alzheimer's disease, urged the Bush administration to support embryonic stem cell research and said that too much time had been wasted discussing the issue. Although a Republican, Mrs. Reagan has been critical of the Bush administration for blocking public funding of stem cell research due to the party's ethical reservations concerning embryo research. Speaking at a fundraising dinner for the Juvenile Diabetes Research Foundation, she said she believed the research could lead to a cure for Alzheimer's disease, and "may provide our scientists with many answers that for so long have been beyond our grasp...I just don't see how we can turn our backs on this...We have lost so much time already...I just really can't bear to lose any more.""

Tags:hematopoietic-cells, alzheimer's, cord-blood, criticism, funding

Abstract
This paper defines what are known as stem cells and what is involved in stem cell (SC) transplantation, and provides a list of current uses for SC transplantation. The writer explains that most common sources for such transplants are bone marrow, blood and cord blood stem cells, and describes in detail how bone marrow and cord blood stem cells are obtained and what is entailed in bone marrow transplantation (BMT). Despite considerable progress in BMT over the years, there are still major problems with graft-versus-host disease (GVHD), failure to engraft and lack of suitable donors. The writer notes that younger donors and good transplant timing lead to better transplant outcomes, and suggests that in the future, emphasis should be on better control of GVHD with novel immunosuppressive and other immunomodulatory agents. This paper contains tables.

Outline:
Introduction
Application of SCs in Transplantation
Types of Disorders Treated
Types of SC Transplants Available
Availability & Collection of Different Sources
Bone Marrow Registries
Cord Blood Banks
Donor Search
Growth Factors
Harvesting
PBSC Harvesting
Cord Blood Harvesting
Risks for Donors
Ethical Issues Regarding the Sources
Outcome of SC Transplantation
Factors Affecting the Outcome
Conditioning Regimen
Non-myeloablative Allogeneic HSCT
Time for Engraftment or Immune Reconstitution
Transplant Related Mortality
Relapse
Role of HLA Compatibility
Effect of Other Cells in the Graft in GVHD and GVL, and the Balance of GVHD and GVL
Conclusion

From the Paper
"The sources for allogeneic stem cell transplant include: half-matched family members, unrelated adult volunteer donors, and related or unrelated umbilical cord blood units (CBU) (Burt & Brush, 1999). The ideal allogeneic bone marrow donor for a patient would be a monozygotic twin, since this transplant is not only HLA-matched but also matched for all other genetic loci. A transplant can be done if a related donor with only one HLA difference is identified, although there is a risk of GVHD. For those without siblings or other related donors, unrelated bone marrow donors would be the only option (Carella et al, 2001)."

Tags:syngeneic autologous placental chemotherapy radiation, immune system, monozygotic tissue heparin

Abstract
This in-depth research paper gives an extensive, detailed view of stem-cell use in bone marrow transplantation (BMT). The paper covers donor registries, cord blood banking, and transplant-related mortality, including comparison tables for various stem cell types. The paper concludes that despite considerable progress in BMT over the years, some of the major obstacles like graft-versus-host disease (GVHD), failure to engraft and lack of suitable donors, continue to be major stumbling blocks.

Outline:
I. Introduction
II. Application of SCs in Transplantation
Type of SC transplants available
Availability & collection of different sources
Bone marrow registries
Cord blood banks
Donor search
Growth factors
Harvesting
PBSC harvesting
Cord blood harvesting
Risks for donors
Ethical issues regarding the sources
III. Outcome of SC transplantation
Factors affecting the outcome
Conditioning regimen
Non-myeloablative allogeneic HSCT
Time for engraftment or immune reconstitution
Transplant related mortality
Relapse
Role of HLA compatibility
Effect of other cells in the graft in GVHD and GVL, and the balance of GVHD and GVL
Conclusion
References

From the Paper
"Until now, there has been no direct evidence for a GVL effect in humans (Burakoff, 1997). Recently, direct evidence has been provided by the infusion of donor leukocytes. Administering donor lymphocyte infusion (DLI) after SCT has emerged as an effective way of separating GVHD from GVL effects (Ferrara, Cooke & Deeg, 2004.)
"DLI infusions have been shown to be effective to induce remissions in chronic myeloid leukaemia, acute myeloid leukaemia and multiple myeloma, and in some cases of acute lymphoblastic leukaemia and myelodysplastic syndrome. The same T cells that mediate GVHD may also be responsible for the GVL effect. In closely matched donor/recipient pairs, there may be the presence of donor T cells that are capable of more specific recognition of leukaemic cells, which leads to complete remissions without GVHD following DLI. On the other hand, if the degree of mismatch between the donor and recipient increases, the frequency of alloreactive T cells increases, leading to a negative balance between GVHD and GVL effects (Barrett & Jiang, 2000.)"

Tags:GVHD, transplants, donor, registry, match

Abstract
In this article the writer notes that stem cells have received much attention because of their unique capacity to renew themselves and morph into several different types of specialized cells. The writer also points out that the practice of harvesting stem cells from aborted fetuses has received much criticism from conservative groups, prompting President Bush to halt federal funding for stem cell research. This paper argues that there is a way to accommodate ethical concerns, while reaping the benefits of stem cell research. The writer maintains that umbilical cords are a viable source of stem cells, and do not raise the same ethical issues as harvesting from fetuses. The writer argues, therefore, that parents should be strongly encouraged to donate their newborns' umbilical cords to public and private banks, to provide scientists with a source of stem cells for their life-saving research.

From the Paper
"Already, umbilical cord stem cells are proving remarkably promising in the treatment of diseases. Researchers have already identified some 67 afflictions that have been successfully treated with cord blood stem cells, and more illnesses are being added to that list. Researchers at the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill, for example, have released a study regarding the use of cord blood stem cells in the treatment of Krabbe's Disease, a fatal disorder of the central nervous system. Babies born with this hereditary disease suffer seizures, blindness, deafness and feeding problems before death at around age two. However, the researchers found that infusing newborns at birth with the cord blood stem cells from an unrelated donor are still alive well past their second birthday. Though some of the children show problems walking, the majority score normally on cognitive development tests and all the children exhibit normal vision."

Tags:fetuses, tissue, blood, newborns

Abstract
This paper looks at the ramifications of the 1998 breakthrough in biotechnology when scientists were able to first isolate individual stem cells. The author looks at the history of biotechnology that led up to this breakthrough,and what this breakthrough means for modern science. It examines the bio-ethical issues that are affected by this breakthrough. The debate surrounding the use of embryonic cells, as opposed to adult stem cells for research is detailed. The author also looks at several areas where stem cell research could improve the lives of people life-threatening genetic diseases, or spinal cord injuries.

From the Paper
"These astounding cell therapies are possible because embryonic stem cells have a remarkable power to unlock the secrets of human genetics as well as heal various diseases as they are pluripotent cells, or cells that have the capacity to proliferate and give rise to almost all of the specialized cell tissues in the human body. (The exception is that stem cells are unable to form placental and other uterine tissue necessary for the creation of a total human embryo.) This means that stem cells hold the incipient or rudimentary power to develop into all the biological tissues that create human life."

Tags:1998, advancement, aids, bioethics, biological, biotechnology, blood, bone, cells, corneal, culture, disease, human, implants, implications, improvement, liver, muscle, neurons, parkinson, prevention, science, stem, warfare

Abstract
This paper first explains that amyotrophic lateral sclerosis (ALS) is a neurological disorder characterized by the progressive degeneration and destruction of motor neurons in the spinal cord and the brain, eventually leading to paralysis and death. The paper then reviews the pathophysiology, symptoms, diagnosis and treatment of this illness and reports that there are still no known medications and medical procedures that can reverse the effects of ALS or prevent its onset. However, the paper indicates that extensive research to understand the mechanism of the disease is promising and could produce a significant breakthrough.

Table of Contents:
Introduction
Pathophysiology
Current Research
Signs and Symptoms
Screening and Diagnosis
Electromyogram (EMG)
Nerve Conduction Study (NCS)
Imaging
Spinal Tap
Muscle Biopsy
Blood and Urine Tests
Treatment
Conclusion

From the Paper
"The initial symptoms of amyotrophic lateral sclerosis are typically observed in the distal portions of the body such as the hands and feet. The symptoms then slowly spread to the more proximal portions of the body including the trunk and neck. When the disease has begun to spread to these areas, the bulbar functions of speaking, swallowing and breathing begin to be affected. These body functions are named as such because they are controlled by the motor neurons found in the bulb-like portion of the brain stem."

Tags:complications, predisposition ratio, motor neurons, types riluzole

Abstract
In this paper the author analyzes in full the potential causes, effects and possible solutions that there are to multiple sclerosis. Amongst other things, he looks at the disease as a genetic auto immune disease and examines how diet can help. The author also mentions many of the preventative treatments that have been tried and are used and some of the research surrounding these. The paper concludes with the positive note that research is continuous in this field to try and help those that suffer from multiple sclerosis.

From the Paper
"The basic pathogenesis of MS involves the entry of immune cells (e.g. T cells, B cells, macrophages) into the CNS through the walls of the capillaries and venules. Immune reactions occur, a lesion is formed and myelin is eventually destroyed. Myelin consists of fatty tissue which wraps around nerve axons. It essentially acts as nerve insulation and is critical for proper nerve transmissions. Loss of myelin results in degradation of nerve transmissions and a resultant multitude of disabilities which gradually worsen over time as more myelin is destroyed."

Tags:collagen, immune, risk, dietary, cell, proteins, food, disease, drug, spinal, cord, blood