‘RED’ MEDICAL BIOTECHNOLGY
‘Red’, is used to categorise the biotech that will provide assistance towards the medical industry. This can involve things like producing pharmaceuticals, which can in turn help with the treatment and prevention of disease. One of the largest, and most well-known aspects of medical biotech is stem cell researche. Stem cells are cells that are able to generate and produce other cells with specialised functions.
This research is beneficial as stem cells can act as repair cells for the body. However, the main issue that arise with medical biotech research is that is can be very expensive, which excludes the benefits for the greater percentage of prospective patients and developing countries. Stem cells injections for example, can cost anywhere between £2,000 and £5,000. On top of this, not everyone agrees with the ethics of medical biotech. As stem cells originate from embryos, babies in the womb, certain groups, devout Christians for example, will view this as wrong and incredibly unethical.
This can potentially hinder, and entirely prevent the research and implementation of the cells.