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First Sheepmen created (85% sheep 15% man.... yes litterally)
methane47
Member UncommonPosts: 3,694
Mankind's path towards become God made shorter: 15% human sheep #1
Quote:
Scientists have created the world's first human-sheep chimera - which has the body of a sheep and half-human organs. The sheep have 15 per cent human cells and 85 per cent animal cells - and their evolution brings the prospect of animal organs being transplanted into humans one step closer. Professor Esmail Zanjani, of the University of Nevada, has spent seven years and £5million perfecting the technique, which involves injecting adult human cells into a sheep's foetus. He has already created a sheep liver which has a large proportion of human cells and eventually hopes to precisely match a sheep to a transplant patient, using their own stem cells to create their own flock of sheep. The process would involve extracting stem cells from the donor's bone marrow and injecting them into the peritoneum of a sheep's foetus. When the lamb is born, two months later, it would have a liver, heart, lungs and brain that are partly human and available for transplant. "We would take a couple of ounces of bone marrow cells from the patient,' said Prof Zanjani, whose work is highlighted in a Channel 4 programme tomorrow. "We would isolate the stem cells from them, inject them into the peritoneum of these animals and then these cells would get distributed throughout the metabolic system into the circulatory system of all the organs in the body. The two ounces of stem cell or bone marrow cell we get would provide enough stem cells to do about ten foetuses. So you don't just have one organ for transplant purposes, you have many available in case the first one fails." At present 7,168 patients are waiting for an organ transplant in Britain alone, and two thirds of them are expected to die before an organ becomes available. Scientists at King's College, London, and the North East Stem Cell Institute in Newcastle have now applied to the HFEA, the Government's fertility watchdog, for permission to start work on the chimeras. But the development is likely to revive criticisms about scientists playing God, with the possibility of silent viruses, which are harmless in animals, being introduced into the human race. Dr Patrick Dixon, an international lecturer on biological trends, warned: "Many silent viruses could create a biological nightmare in humans. Mutant animal viruses are a real threat, as we have seen with HIV." Animal rights activists fear that if the cells get mixed together, they could end up with cellular fusion, creating a hybrid which would have the features and characteristics of both man and sheep. But Prof Zanjani said: "Transplanting the cells into foetal sheep at this early stage does not result in fusion at all." |
http://www.mailonsunday.co.uk/pages/...0&in_a_source=
All i have to say... is that this is frickin crazy...
What's your Wu Name?
Donovan --> Wu Name = Violent Knight
Methane47 --> Wu Name = Thunderous Leader
"Some people call me the walking plank, 'cuz any where you go... Death is right behind you.."
<i>ME<i>
Comments
$OE lies list
http://www.rlmmo.com/viewtopic.php?t=424&start=0
"
And I don't want to hear anything about "I don't believe in vampires" because *I* don't believe in vampires, but I believe in my own two eyes, and what *I* saw is ******* vampires! "
Its Evolution Baby!!
I took a new look at the notion of evolution after The Matrix. I mean Smith is right.... if we design something that takes over from us... its evolution, no doubt about it.
Personally Im all for this sort of science. Ive always believed we shouldnt open "Pandoras Box"..... we should smash it to bits and lets the contents fly
..... lets face it the alternative is we try to "stop" progressing. Convince ourselves things are ok right now... just the way they are and stop researching...... thats just nonsense..... The fact that it appeals to most people as an option is just fear.... and another thing that makes The Matrix so beleivable... given the choice people would of course rather have the known than the unkown, even if the unkown holds all the promise...
Me... Im for the FUTURE!
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"MMOs, for people that like think chatting is like a skill or something, rotflol"
http://purepwnage.com
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"Far away across the field, the tolling of the iron bell, calls the faithful to their knees. To hear the softly spoken magic spell" Pink Floyd-Dark Side of the Moon
God!! Praise be, you are right!!!
Pictures dont lie folks....they just dont lie
People who have to create conspiracy and hate threads to further a cause lacks in intellectual comprehension of diversity.
Bah if this goes to far I think the Furry lovers will be satisfied at least hahahahaha!
$OE lies list
http://www.rlmmo.com/viewtopic.php?t=424&start=0
"
And I don't want to hear anything about "I don't believe in vampires" because *I* don't believe in vampires, but I believe in my own two eyes, and what *I* saw is ******* vampires! "
Sheep? Why the bloody hell would someone want to do that with sheep? I can understand the practical applications, but apes of some kind, chimpanzees or Bonobos in particular, would be a much better option for such an operation, MUCH less likely for complications to arise. Not to mention, with less than a 1% genetic difference, their work is made easier.
And if you really had to forgo the apes, a pig would be a better option regardless, the size and shape of their internal organs is already very close to ours.
No man is an island, entire of itself; every man is a piece of the continent, a part of the main. any man's death diminishes me, because I am involved in mankind, and therefore never send to know for whom the bell tolls; it tolls for thee.
Hemingway
I know a couple people that look JUST LIKE that!!
What's your Wu Name?
Donovan --> Wu Name = Violent Knight
Methane47 --> Wu Name = Thunderous Leader
"Some people call me the walking plank, 'cuz any where you go... Death is right behind you.."
<i>ME<i>
Hence people with fire are more evolved then those without... Simple as that...
What's your Wu Name?
Donovan --> Wu Name = Violent Knight
Methane47 --> Wu Name = Thunderous Leader
"Some people call me the walking plank, 'cuz any where you go... Death is right behind you.."
<i>ME<i>
Won't the Skittles people be happy.
I hope some day we can all put aside our racisms and prejudices and just laugh at people
I'm still hoping for the day when we can breed humans for organ slaughter purpose and for rejuvinating ourselfs, that's evolution, I won't be around then though.
It's not different than breeding animals for the same purpose, since we're all equal under "god".
Note; there's no sarcasm in this post.
I CREATED MYSELF!
"<Claus|Dev> i r pk"
SW:TOR|War40K:DMO|GW2
Genetic engineering is human's way of playing God by manipulating genes that don't occur naturally in the environment. This creates a problem because it makes new species and new environments never seen before that are unforseeable and uncontrollable for the future.
Once these new, genetically engineered species are introduced into our environement and if the environment changes or if a problem persists, it cannot be recalled or changed back. That's a major problem with changing the natural effects of a species of animals or plants.
All right then, lets go ahead and get rid of everything we humans have changed from its original form in terms of original gene patterns.
Woops, that means no more grain products (including beer), dairy products, beef, chicken, pork, or almost any kind of fruit... Crap, come to think of it, almost nothing we ever eat hasn't been changed somehow.
Lets see, most of our medicines would be wiped clean, as would just about every single scrap of clothing on the face of the Earth...
While you're at it, if you have any kind of pet, shoot it dead right now.
No man is an island, entire of itself; every man is a piece of the continent, a part of the main. any man's death diminishes me, because I am involved in mankind, and therefore never send to know for whom the bell tolls; it tolls for thee.
Hemingway
They came from the sea and they came from the sky, Captain America is going to die!
member of imminst.org
Aelfinn, outfctrl does have a valid point in his response, as do you. I agree many good things can and have come from our ability to "play God" with genetics, i.e. medicines, feeding and breeding stock, disease management/cures, etc.. However, we are getting into an area with cloning and "mixing" of species genetics which, quite frankly, we have no real idea of what the consequences will be.
Look at the myriad forms of re-engineered viruses created under the banner of germ warfare, by countries both willing and unwilling to admit it. Any number of which, if ever allowed to escape the labs could cause immeasureable harm to not only mankind, but the ecology as a whole.
Also, when creating a "new" species, do we really know what this will do to the balance of life on our planet? Evolution is a process which takes nature thousands to millions of years to slowly filter into the ecosystem. What happens when an "alien" species (a.k.a. man made) is introduced directly into that same ecosystem without natures system of checks and balances?
For instance, the sheep thing. What percentage of an animal becomes enough to grant it the same rights as a human? What if, by the introduction of the human genome, sheep are falsely accelerated to develop overt sentient qualities? Or, as you asked, what if the same genetic manipulation were done to our closest match in nature, apes? Whether chimpanzees or 300 lb gorrillas? It would take even less of a genetic change to give them the boost toward true sentience. Would there really become a possibility of a "Planet of the Apes" situation, with humans and apes having a civil war?
It's no different than concerns of how smart do we really want machines? At the least, you have the chance for an "I, Robot" situation (which is why I always enjoy reading Assimov, his take on the "differences" of humans and machines is brilliant) or at the extreme end, we end up with a Skynet sending out waves of terminators.
At the very least, I firmly believe that we are, as Razorback said, preparing to open Pandora's Box. In fact, I think we've already cracked the lid open and the light is just starting to show. But is that the light of wisdom, or the fiery brilliance of destruction? Only time will tell.
A.) The example in the OP is not true genetic manipulation. There is no change in the natural DNA patterns of the sheep. A few human cells have been coaxed to replicate alongside the natural cells of the sheep. That animal is gaining nothing that could possibly ever grant it sentience. The worst that could happen, is it gets a manmade form of cancer and dies.
B.) It is too late to back off now, when sucessful cases of genetic manipulation remain our only real hope for almost every world crisis we face, from viruses to world hunger. If it becomes a choice between playing god and our society collapsing over highly avoidable problems, there would be no debate as far as I'm concerned.
C.) So long as care is observed in the cloning/ species hybrid field, the only real issues are those of ethics. Like in your example, sure, it would be easy to trip an ape over the line into true sentience (if not by the method described here) but should we?
No man is an island, entire of itself; every man is a piece of the continent, a part of the main. any man's death diminishes me, because I am involved in mankind, and therefore never send to know for whom the bell tolls; it tolls for thee.
Hemingway
I'm confused...how is this evolution? We made a freak of nature and now we're calling it evolution? Jeez that words gets thrown around more than the "L" word in crappy relationships.
I'm curious as to what type of stem cells they used though, whether they were adult stem cells or embryonic.
Your argument is like a two legged dog with an eating disorder...weak and unbalanced.
Heh, I sure don't define this as evolution, even though I do view the potential value of such an advancement differently.
But in any case, it is adult stem cells. The idea is to create a "clone" of a person's organ, one that is composed of enough of the patient's own cells that it is not rejected by his or her immune system when it comes time to transplant. It is of almost no use to patients with only months or days to live, but can save anyone that has longer to wait. Theoretically, one could continually replace every organ in your body as it begins to fail in this fashion, extending one's lifetime by huge leaps.
No man is an island, entire of itself; every man is a piece of the continent, a part of the main. any man's death diminishes me, because I am involved in mankind, and therefore never send to know for whom the bell tolls; it tolls for thee.
Hemingway
Heh, I sure don't define this as evolution, even though I do view the potential value of such an advancement differently.
But in any case, it is adult stem cells. The idea is to create a "clone" of a person's organ, one that is composed of enough of the patient's own cells that it is not rejected by his or her immune system when it comes time to transplant.
Alright that's what I thought, I was just making sure....then yay, I can get on board and support this idea.
Your argument is like a two legged dog with an eating disorder...weak and unbalanced.
No man is an island, entire of itself; every man is a piece of the continent, a part of the main. any man's death diminishes me, because I am involved in mankind, and therefore never send to know for whom the bell tolls; it tolls for thee.
Hemingway
You and me both.... I'm not sure If I support this or not... I just thought it was really interesting..
But if this goes on to become what we are theorizing now... How long then does it take humans to become just complex parasites? Where we need to havest other lessor beings to lengthen our own life...
I just dont like the idea of playing god... or messing around with Pandora's toys... Because we won't know the repercussions until its way too late..
What's your Wu Name?
Donovan --> Wu Name = Violent Knight
Methane47 --> Wu Name = Thunderous Leader
"Some people call me the walking plank, 'cuz any where you go... Death is right behind you.."
<i>ME<i>
Why? Animals are here for us to use...the only problem I would have had would have been if they cloned a human or were using embryonic stem cells
Your argument is like a two legged dog with an eating disorder...weak and unbalanced.
You and me both.... I'm not sure If I support this or not... I just thought it was really interesting..
But if this goes on to become what we are theorizing now... How long then does it take humans to become just complex parasites? Where we need to havest other lessor beings to lengthen our own life...
I just dont like the idea of playing god... or messing around with Pandora's toys... Because we won't know the repercussions until its way too late..
Is there really a difference between harvesting an animal for food, and harvesting the same species of animal for transplantable organs? In both cases, the animal is raised, and then killed to serve human interests and lengthen human lives.
No man is an island, entire of itself; every man is a piece of the continent, a part of the main. any man's death diminishes me, because I am involved in mankind, and therefore never send to know for whom the bell tolls; it tolls for thee.
Hemingway
Sheep and people both occur natuarally in the environment..... There are already a lot of crossovers between the two species from my observations of humanity.
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"MMOs, for people that like think chatting is like a skill or something, rotflol"
http://purepwnage.com
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"Far away across the field, the tolling of the iron bell, calls the faithful to their knees. To hear the softly spoken magic spell" Pink Floyd-Dark Side of the Moon