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Asked by auks493med on 8 Nov 2023.
Question: Is an embryo considered a human or not.
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Martin Minarik answered on 8 Nov 2023:
I would certainly consider an embryo as a human. An embryo is created by fusion of two different genomes, one from the mother and one from the father, and as a result it has a unique combination of genes no one else has (unless it’s got an identical twin of course), which makes it a unique human being.
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Michael Schubert answered on 9 Nov 2023:
This is a tricky question because it depends on what you mean by “human.”
Embryos are certainly made of human cells containing human genetic material, which is capable of developing into a complete human being. But there is a lot of debate about whether or not embryos themselves qualify as complete human beings (you may have heard it phrased as, “Is an embryo a person?”). This is more of a legal and philosophical question.
According to some laws and beliefs, an embryo is considered a person because it has the potential to develop into a complete and unique human being. According to others, though, an embryo is not a person because it has not yet developed into one and completely relies on a mature, functioning human body for its survival. What do you think?
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Eleonora Roschi answered on 9 Nov 2023:
Biology speaking yes, because it is made of human cells that contain human DNA. But this is only considering “human” as the species of mammal that the DNA is categorized as.
When we colloquially talk about humans, we usually mean a “person”. In that sense, there is a lot of debate about when an embryo becomes a person, and the rules and laws change greatly in many different countries. Ultimately the answer to this question is an ethical one, that I highly encourage to research further.My own opinion is that an embryo is not a baby, as it has only the potential to be one, and therefore a lot of careful scrutiny needs to be put in place to make sure women are aware and informed to make their own decisions.
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Courtney Povey answered on 9 Nov 2023:
If it is a human embryo then yes it will be considered a human as this is it’s species. However, what most people debate about if when an embryo becomes a ‘person’. The rules surrounding this are very different across the globe. A good example of this is the law on abortion, in the UK it is legal until around 23 weeks whereas in a lot of other places in the world it is completely illegal.
I think this is a really important topic! -
Walter Bodmer answered on 18 Nov 2023:
There is no hard and fast rule to define when your human life begins in a developing embryo. The current legislation chose 14days as a pragmatic solution and as far as I am aware , at least in the UK, that remains the time limit for how long you can culture a human embryo.
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Nikoleta Vavouraki answered on 27 Nov 2023:
Thank you for the great question. I will agree with the rest of the scientists. Briefly, an embryo’s species is human, but whether it is a “complete” human or a baby, is difficult to say.
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