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ORIGINAL RESEARCH ARTICLES |
Is The Use Of Animal Organs For Transplants Morally Acceptable?-debates Over The Use Of Animals In Xenotransplantation-
Rui-Peng LEIa
aPh.D., Cand. Center for Bioethics, School of the Humanities Huazhong University of Science & Technology, CHINA
As a first step, the arguments for and against the use of animals for medical purposes in general were reviewed. These arguments are summarized briefly in the first part of the article. Even if people accept in principle the use of animals in medicine and medical research, their use in xenotransplantation may raise particular difficulties. There are three key issues in the debate over the use of animals in xenotransplantation. The first is whether as a matter of principle, it is considered to be morally acceptable to use animals as organ or tissue source; the second is the ethical acceptability of the use of primates to supply transplant material; the third is the ethical issues raised by the use of genetically modified animals to provide organs for xenotransplantation. If it is agreed to be acceptable in principle, there are then questions to address regarding the welfare of animals within any xenotransplantation programme. Finally, the author discusses these ethical issues in Chinese cultural context.Keywords: The use of animals, xenotransplantation, moral argumentTurkiye Klinikleri J Med Ethics 2004, 12:242-247
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