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Embryonic Stem Cell Research
Stem cells are the building blocks of human tissues. The Church teaches that the intentional destruction of human embryos, which is necessary for embryonic stem cell research, is gravely immoral (cf. Catechism, no. 2274-75).
Stem cells have two characteristics that make them stem cells. First, they can reproduce without becoming differentiated (specialized). Examples of differentiated cells are nerve, muscle, and blood cells. Second, stem cells can produce other cells, called progenitor cells, which can eventually spawn highly differentiated cells. In other words, a stem cell can produce a cell that can become the “ancestor” of a lineage of cells that produce muscle or blood cells. The progenitor cells and the lineages of cells they produce are together called stem cell lines.
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