According to three Stanford scientists, lack of human biological material is a “major bottleneck to progress” for medical research.
A steadily growing idea is one known as “bodyoids”—biological structures created from human stem cells that don’t have consciousness or feel pain.
While access to such a technology could supercharge medical research, the authors readily note that the idea is also awash with ethical considerations.
Today, medical research experiences a macabre crisis of supply and demand: organ donors and scientists alike need more human bodies than are available. In a new article published in MIT Technology Review, three scientists from Stanford University argue that there could be a potential work-around for what they describe as a “major bottleneck to progress”—one that crucially doesn’t involve the further exploitation of living, sentient species. However, the idea may be difficult to swallow.
The need for organs and other human biological materials is dire. As the scientists note, 100,000 people in the U.S. alone are waiting for a viable, life-saving organ transplant, and trials of experimental drugs can risk harm to patients while slowing down their development. So, the authors argue for the creation of spare bodies, or “bodyoids,” grown from pluripotent stem cells—a process made possible by recent technological advancements. The bodyoids would be cultured using genetic techniques that inhibit brain development, and as a result, these organic creations would lack consciousness or the ability to feel pain.
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If you’re feeling some “ick” about the idea of creating what is essentially lumps of human organs and cells, you’re not alone—the authors know how it sounds.
“Many will find the concept grotesque or appalling. And for good reason,” the authors wrote for MIT Technology Review. But they argue that the idea comes with immense medical benefits. “We know much can be gained from studying the human body.”
Recent stem cell developments have shown that recreating certain human structures using stem cells is possible. Scientists have mimicked what looks like the early stages of human embryo development using stem cells, and as the authors note, creating an artificial uterus has similarly progressed over the years. Of course, with an idea that sounds like a sci-fi movie (or a sci-fi horror movie to some), many questions remain—particularly if the bodyoids can survive without a functioning brain, or if stem cells can give rise to such structures.
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However, the idea isn’t as far-fetched as it might seem. For years, scientists have conducted research on animated, or living, cadavers—brain-dead bodies kept alive via medical intervention. Of course, this research is done with family consent, but that doesn’t mean it isn’t ethically contentious. Could “bodyoids” make the ethical considerations of humans who lack a perceived consciousness even more fraught?
For now, bodyoids remain a fantastical idea, but the authors argue that it’s time that governments, institutions, and humanity at large begin to grapple with the scientific and ethical considerations of these potential biological creations.
“As we proceed, the ethical and social issues are at least as important as the scientific ones,” the authors wrote. “Even if it looks possible, determining whether we should make bodyoids, nonhuman or human, will require considerable thought, discussion, and debate.”
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Darren lives in Portland, has a cat, and writes/edits about sci-fi and how our world works. You can find his previous stuff at Gizmodo and Paste if you look hard enough.