ry differentiate into practically any type of human cell, from heart, liver, blood or skin cells. Stem cells can also be derived from umbilical cords, placentas and adult cells. The harvesting of adult stem cells from umbilical cords, bone marrow or skin does not foster any major ethical concerns. The adult stem cells are different from embryonic stem cells in that they can only become cell types of the tissue that they originated from. Therefore, these cells are not as useful as the stem cells derived from human embryos. The researchers hope to find ways of using these cells to repair damaged tissue which will provide them broad applications in transplantations by offering new access to organs and body tissues. The umbilical cord stem cells are used to repopulate bone marrow in small children and today, are being used to treat an anemic disorder in children called Fanconi's anemia. The problem with cord blood stem cells is that can only be collected in small amounts. This severely limits the use of these in the clinical arena. The embryonic stem cells are harvested before they have differentiated, and then manipulated into becoming certain types of cells. For example, cells could be implanted into a patient who has had experienced damaged heart cells from a heart attack. Before this future application can be realized, steady supplies of these cells need to be secured.
             There are two questions that are raised over the federal funding of stem cell research. Is it legal and morally ethical to use embryos for this type of research? Researchers have been entangled in the abortion debate because destruction of the embryo is caus
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