Team Use Stem Cells to Restore Mobility in Paralyzed Monkey 196
interval1066 writes "From the article: 'Japanese researchers said Wednesday they had used stem cells to restore partial mobility in a small monkey that had been paralysed from the neck down by a spinal injury.' This is huge news in the world of stem cell research; restoring some muscular control to a simian is a huge step. This means that stem cell therapy is a demonstrably viable path to restoring motility for millions of accident victims, palsy and ms sufferers, the list just goes on."
Induced pluripotent stem (Score:5, Informative)
Re:Induced pluripotent stem (Score:5, Funny)
So not embryonic stem cells. Everybody wins.
Except for wheelchair manufacturers.
Re:Induced pluripotent stem (Score:4, Funny)
I'd love it if they were the next buggy whip industry.
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Your analysis is too simplistic, just like anyone who would blame corporations for all the world's problems.
Why are the poor stupid and lazy? Why are the people who work for corporations good at something? Could it have anything to do with differences in access to education, nutrition, and a safe, positive environment?
What can we do to improve access to those things in order to prevent more people from becoming stupid and lazy? Could we improve spending on welfare and social services, or take steps to curb
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Hmmm... it seems you must be poor, as you're too stupid and lazy to register an account.
I don't know about your country, but in the US there is no welfare and hasn't been since 1996. The closest is SNAP, which used to be food stamps.
Do you know who is on the SNAP program? Wal-Mart and McDonald employees! That's right, the people who are WORKING. Who really benefits from the SNAP program? Wal-Mart and McDonalds, who don't have to pay their employees a living wage. Raise the minimum wage to a reasonable level
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Exactly. I was just going to point out that the article trolls about embryonic stem cell usage in the final two paragraphs:
"Scientists say the use of human embryonic stem cells as a treatment for cancer and other diseases holds great promise, but the process has drawn fire from religious conservatives and others who oppose it.
Embryonic stem cell research is controversial because human embryos are destroyed in order to obtain the cells capable of developing into almost every tissue of the body."
The cells us
Re:Induced pluripotent stem (Score:5, Insightful)
The cells used in this treatment were derived from adult skin cells. No controversy here. Everyone wins.
The fact that adult stem cells are useful should lead us to believe that embryonic stem cells are useful too. In this way any work on adult stem cells is linked to (the lack of) work on embryonic stem cells. If we can save lives with adult stem cells, what if we could save even more lives with embryonic stem cells? Shouldn't we at least do the research to find out?
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These actually are "induced pluripotent stem cells" not "adult stem cells." The difference being that these are adult skin cells (fibroblasts technically) that have been manipulated, likely by viral transfection of 3 or 4 genes (genes which have been linked to cancer) to become -like- embryonic stem cells.
Adult stem cells which would regenerate your spinal cord without manipulation have not really been done much. There is a population of stem cells found in mouse whisker roots that seem to do the job, and
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Adult stem cells have the obvious advantage of being your cells, and thus not causing any issues with rejection. Also, as nanotechnology matures, there's the long-term prospect of setting up fully autonomous regenerative capability, which would solve the problems with "lifestyle" diseases, thus vastly decreasing medical spending.
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Re:Induced pluripotent stem (Score:4, Insightful)
What controversy is there for anyone in the least bit educated?
Who opposes fertility treatments? If you do not oppose those why would you oppose the methods used to dispose of the left over embryos?
They were going in the garbage anyway.
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What controversy is there for anyone in the least bit educated?
Ah, yes, well, there's the kicker. Uneducated people tend to outnumber the educated ones.
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Not sure about compulsory, but organ donor status should indeed be the default instead of opt-in.
Smokers are fine by me, they pay a lot more in taxes than they cost.
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Organ and limb harvesting of death row inmates should be required too.
To be honest, I don't see the problem with this. They're dead, they don't need them, and it could potentially help people.
And harvesting from the general population should be compulsory as well.
Don't see the problem here, either. They have no use for their organs or limbs.
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Here's the problem: Logan's Run.
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They only go into cryogenic freezing until they are no longer needed. Then they are disposed of by incineration. It would be too expensive to keep all unused fertilized eggs cryogenically frozen for all time.
Re:Induced pluripotent stem (Score:4, Insightful)
Not really. An embryo doesn't get to save a life before it's flushed down the drain.
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Hmm. so your criteria for being a live human being is having a head?
That sounds perfectly reasonable. Carl Sagan had a better suggestion, that a useful criteria for ethical or moral purposes can be that the brain is working, claiming that this happens in the seventh month of pregnancy. Of course the technical criteria is earlier than that; I would certainly consider a zygote to be technically a live human being!
You use "live human being" and "human" in an argumentum ad lexicon, confusing descriptive and proscriptive definitions. The people who oppose Plan B tablets engage
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I wonder if the GP had a teratoma, would he respect its right to live? It is, after all, human life -- a living bundle of human cells.
What a jerkoff.
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It seems to be more a question of potential than actual functionality or conciousness. We kill animals for food or pest control and they are clearly capable of feeling pain and fear. The main difference between a relatively intelligent animal and an embryo at an early stage of development seems to be the potential for the latter to grown into a self aware human being.
Our attitude towards unborn children is biased by the Christian notion that human life is sacred. It extends to other areas of human life too,
Re:Induced pluripotent stem (Score:4, Interesting)
Someone I know online found themselves in pretty much that situation. Their baby-to-be was diagnosed with a rare birth defect and had zero chance of survival. The choices were a) abort now or b) go through a difficult pregnancy and risky birth to give birth to a dead baby. Awful choices to make and ones I wouldn't wish on my worst enemy.
They opten for the abortion but time was a factor and the hospital couldn't get it done in time. So they went to a family planning center/abortion clinic. Of course, there were protestors outside. On this, the worst day of their lives, when they were heading in to end the pregnancy they had so looked forward to, the protestors thought it was a good idea to shout at them and tell them "You're killing your baby!"
When his wife was taken away for the procedure, he realized he couldn't just sit in the waiting room. He turned on his video phone, walked out and politely confronted the protesters.
http://www.daddyfiles.com/2010/07/13/abort-protesters/
The fun part is when the protesters get annoyed at him for bothering them and threaten to call the police. So calling someone a "baby murderer" when you don't know anything about their situation is fine but asking you questions in a polite manner (when he had every right to yell scream and curse at them) is cause for calling the police?
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So not embryonic stem cells. Everybody wins.
Not quite, ESC are mostly used right now for basic research into cell biology. One fairly small down side to results like these, where adult stem cells or IPsC get results for treatment, is that people forget the fact that there's more to learn here than how to repair a spinal cord. We haven't figured out how a fertilized egg becomes a full human, ESC are a valuable tool to that end. If people get the idea that there's nothing more to do with ESC since we can fix monkey spinal cords, ESC research is goin
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So should animal testing be illegal? They cannot consent either.
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So you have no objection to being forced under the dissection knife right or forced to be experimented on in order to help figure out how adults age? It's the same argument.
No, an embryonic stem cell is not a person by anyone's standards. A leftover embryo from IVF scheduled for incineration is not a person by my standards. I am a person by my standards.
You seem to be arguing that we should cover up the fact that iPSCs so that they don't think ESCs are useless and therefore allow them to be banned. Is this correct?
You know full well it's not. I'm not advocating covering anything up. It would be nice though if people realized there was more benefit from ESC research than repairing spinal cords.
Embryonic or adult? (Score:2)
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To clarify, the blurb from "inquirer.net" was light on that detail but was not written by the scientists involved in the research. They undoubtedly wrote it up and submitted it for peer-review, and will include the experimental details.
It may also be that they did a control of the same things with embryonic stem cells. It would make sense: if the iPS monkeys didn't recover the same mobility the ESC monkeys did, that would be important to know.
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Why do you care?
Do you oppose fertility treatments? If not, why do you care how they dispose of the left over material?
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How do you feel about older folks attempting to reproduce?
For each birth many miscarriages occur, in older women the rates get worse. At what point is it immoral for women to keep trying to get pregnant?
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Yeah, what bknabe said: http://stemcells.nih.gov/info/basics/basics10.asp [nih.gov] [nih.gov]. Score another one for adult stem cells.
Sorry to be a stickler over terms, but "adult stem cell" and "induced pluripotent stem cells" are two different things. An adult stem cell is a stem cell from the adult (or child) body which can effectively be used as is. These generally have a narrower range of fates. You can take a blood stem cell and it will produce blood cells. It will not produce neurons, but you don't have to change it's epigenetics to get it to produce blood.
iPS on the other hand are cells which don't need to be stem cells initia
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Not that it matters...
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The mention of embryonic is a absolutely moronic the controversy is about embryonic not adult stem cells. Stem Cell articles really make me hate the media, every article says that stem cells are the greatest thing since germ theory and they could very well be right. If journalist want to help
Peer-Review v. Newspaper (Score:4, Informative)
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Hideyuki Okano has almost 300 papers and some of them in very reputable journals. This is most likely the real deal.
This'll show them... (Score:4, Funny)
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Salute. (Score:5, Interesting)
"that had been paralysed from the neck down by a spinal injury" -- Bet it wasn't an accident.
I for one wish to honor our little buddy that took one for the team, Not his team, our team, the team two branches over on the evolutionary tree.
Re:Salute. (Score:4, Funny)
Re:Salute. (Score:5, Funny)
I was thinking that as well. How often do Japanese people run across paralyzed monkeys and then think, "I bet this monkey would be good for stem cell research"
Yes thats correct. They run accross the monkey first, then think, "Yep he is a good candidate for stem cell research!"
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They run accross the monkey first...
With what? A Honda?
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They run accross the monkey first...
With what? A Honda?
Well, if it was with a Toyota, then it very well could have been an (accelerator pedal related) accident...
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I hope that you're completely wrong, but I sadly suspect that you are completely correct.
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It's okay. They only do it to the bad monkeys. The Hitler monkeys, Mussolini monkeys, and occasionally the "give me your lunch money or you get another swirlie" monkeys.
All the good monkeys are treated with utmost respect, given massages every day, and an up-to-date subscription to HBO.
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You had better hope we never have monkey overlords.
So long as the monkeys were properly anesthetized and they only did the 100 monkeys they needed not a couple more just for jollies then I say go for it.
No need to torture the little bastards.
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Unknown? Seriously? Nick DiPaolo [google.com]
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Oh right. You only care about yourself, dick.
No, I simply don't equate monkeys with human beings. That's a big difference. Now, if you want to place yourself on the same level as a monkey, go right the fuck ahead. I'll continue on with my life knowing that my species is more important to me like the other 99% of the population. In the meantime, you can go back to your PETA rallies and pretend you're doing something useful.
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I know this is going to be tasteless, but you just know it's true:
Hey, why're you complaining? The alternative would've been throwing the monkey away, that way it was at least good for another test. And it even worked!
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"That poor sweet monkey. Oh well , lets gather him up , theres no sense in letting him go to waste" *licks lips*
Non-Obligatory Futurama reference ;)
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As I see it, a defining characteristic of our world is that some live by sacrificing others. Obviously it doesn't start with man, it goes all the way down the evolutionary chain. Seeing that the whole natural order is like that, and that its often unavoidable given what came before, people justify it. But there's a price we pay. And as we become increasingly powerful, the price can get higher. Europe's 20th century wars would be one example of how behavior that sort of worked before becomes more problem
Re:Salute. (Score:4, Interesting)
It's a sticky wicket to say the least. It bothers me terribly for cosmetics to be tested on animals, and don't think it should be done. It bothers me somewhat less so to know animals are being used for medical testing. But it still bothers me. I still think it is a good idea to have animal testing for medical research, as yes, there are some amazing discoveries made because of it, which is admittedly hypocritical. And yes, it also bothers me that I am willing to be hypocritical to save humans lives, but I'm not willing to give up the science, even for the poor critters.
For it is worth, at least I am honest about my own hypocracy. Sometimes life just gives you shitty options to choose from, and I gotta choose the shitty option that saves more human lives.
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It seems similar to me as the quandary with eating meat. A lot of people have to eat meat to stay healthy, yet it still requires sacrificing something else. All you can do is pick the lesser of evils, and try to point yourself in the right direction. Personally I'm against a lot of the medical testing they do, but its a judgment call, and reasonable people can arrive at different conclusions.
One reason I'm against some of it, is I see that the medical industry has a lot of power lust and greed in it, and
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I understand your view on meat. I eat meat, and catch, clean and prepare my own fish as well. I was raised doing some hunting, and have shot, cleaned and prepped everything from rabbits, squirrel (once or twice), dove and quail, deer, turkey, etc. I don't hunt now, but understand why others do. I think being too far removed from the food chain in unhealthy, personally. I'm of the belief that a person should do their own dirty work at least every now and then, or go vegan.
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I'm of the belief that a person should do their own dirty work at least every now and then, or go vegan.
I agree. Or at least smell a feed lot one time and see if they still want to eat beef that's not free range. The way chickens are raised these days is appalling also.
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I am trying to figure out why you value animal life more than plant life.
All eating requires sacrifice of life.
"motility"? (Score:2)
Surely you meant "mojility".
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Surely you meant "mojility".
That'd be funny if it contained an element that was humorous.
Obligatory... (Score:2)
Mein furher! I can walk! http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=A9ihKq34Ozc [youtube.com]
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BMO
Well... (Score:3)
All you naysayers can fuck off. I've just told my paralyzed monkey about this new and he's most excited.
Go rain on some other parade!
Re:Well... (Score:4, Funny)
Uh, I think they're referring to a "simian" monkey. Not the one you spank [urbandictionary.com]. For that, there's still viagra...
How does help MS patients? (Score:3)
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confusing article... (Score:2)
First there's this:
...which is then followed by this:
Here's what confuses me: the first bit seems to suggest the stem cells used to "make the monkey jump" were adult, not embryonic. So why include the last little bit about embryonic stem cell research? Am I incorrect about the fir
Fools (Score:2)
Fools! Don't you realize that is EXACTLY what the monkeys have been waiting for?! Now there's nothing to stand in there way!
MS sufferers (Score:2)
I RTFA, this is terrible (Score:2)
"Japan team says stem cells made paralysed monkey jump again"
Oh, researchers make animals "jump" eh? How original! Thats what 1.21 Jigga-watts'll do to ya!
I recommend The Animals Film, from 1981, nothing has changed:
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_Animals_Film [wikipedia.org]
I would never force someone to watch The Animals Film, or Earthlings, however, for those willing, TAF has very indepth footage of "animal testing". Near the end, a "two headed dog" is created, by sewing one small dogs head, and forelimbs atop a larger dog. Who knows, perhaps by the same laboratory
Subject (Score:2)
This is great news for people who live in countries not ruled by religious dumb fucks who oppose all stem cells, regardless of where the stem cells originated.
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The issue is really whether one should be able to pre-
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Uhm....
There are "clones" out there already.
They're called Identical Twins.
I'm sure you can agree with me that one twin is not the same person as the other.
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BMO
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This all reminds me of Louise Brown, the first "test tube baby". When she was born there
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Who gets the first clone? If it's a clone of Jessica Biel, I claim firsts!
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I don't really understand the social stigma against cloning. Is it some genetic diversity argument?
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I'm cool with that as long as it doesn't have a brain.
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What if we grow just the parts?
Or a clone that lacks anything but a brainstem?
Where do you want to draw the line?
Should we kill all the identical twins now, just to be safe?
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Well, there are a few concerns. A few moral ones, and a few genetic ones.
Let's get the genetic ones first, since they're more tangible. Cloning is an imperfect way of reproduction, at least in organisms that are not "supposed" to propagate through cloning. We "fade" as we clone. Cloning introduces errors. Errors multiply. Unless that theory is wrong (admittedly, I don't know of a proof yet, so far I only know of the theory, and I kinda hope nobody put it to the test yet), creating a copy from a copy from a
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Yeah, I get the technical issues, but I think the moral arguments are mostly assuming that cloning is perfect and we can do whatever we need to do.
But in terms of the other stuff, if you did a thought experiment where one child was a clone and one wasn't, if they were both via IVF what's the difference, really? Its ridiculous to even suggest that you'd somehow "own" the resulting person as it is to suggest parents "own" a test tube baby. The only real parallel I can see is a lesbian couple that has a chil
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I guess the problem is rather the definition of "perfect". What is a "perfect" human being? Which traits are desirable? Will it be socially acceptable to be a clone? Or to NOT be one?
I think the real issue would be the social response to clones. Not to cloning, but to the people resulting from it. Currently we view people are special and as valuable because everyone is unique (ok, aside of identical twins and the like, but that's a small enough sample for us to "ignore" that matter). What if there are hundr
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Is it some genetic diversity argument?
No, it's just that people are scared of clones [hendersonr...anding.com].
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But again, that's just a facet of ever advancing medical technology. In some ways, rich children that benefit from the best medicine and education are already mentally and physically superior because of that. But cloning by itself doesn't affect the situation, as you'd need modifications to the genes to get to a situation where you have perfect people you'd want to clone anyways.
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How is this any different than the current system?
My mother did not smoke crack this gave me an advantage over the children of crackheads. My parents could also afford to spend lots of time with me and teach me to read before I ever stepped foot in a class room, again a huge advantage over the children of crackheads and many others.
At which point is the help a parent gives immoral.
It is nearly impossible for a poor person to become rich, it has always been that way what would be changed?
The current batch ha
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Are you trying to make a joke or do you really think your DNA stores all the information you have in your brain?
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1. So what? Good way for poor people to get some money on their hands, good way for researchers to get cheap embryonic stem cells. Win-win. Your problem being? That "people" (I use the term loosely) die? Oh please, happens across the globe, thousands of times per hour, and here it's at least for something good.
2. What's your problem with cloning me, butchering whatever gets created that way and saving my life with it? Might surprise you, but I kinda like living!
The problem I have with cloning stems (pardon
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1. Nope, we trow out more due to fertility treatments than we will ever need. No need to pay anyone.
2. Why is cloning people such a big deal? What if I split an embryo inside a lady just as it happens in nature when identical twins are created? Does that make me an evil madman?
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It truly pisses me off to no end that the media doesn't add the word adult in every article where adult stem cells are used. I sometimes think there's a conspiracy they don't want to inform people so the contraversy
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But it's good to see that you're living up to the ideal image of the "tolerant left" as opposed to the "bigoted right". It's not like you were calling for people to die and burn in hell or suffer a lifetime of paralysis for holding a belief.
Oh, wait...
But at least you didn't say anything about hypocrites...
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If he doesn't believe in Hell and condemns you to it, is it really an insult? Its like saying "I condemn you to pink fluffy elephant land....for ETERNITY!" or "I'll see you in non-existence!". Does it really matter?
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Do those same folks oppose fertility treatments?
If they do not, then they have no room to complain about how the left over waste is disposed of. It was going to be burned anyway.
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There should be a "Delete Account" mod option, which kicks in if every moderator selects it. It would be great for tired old jokes that just won't die!.
There are three: Troll, flamebait, and overrated. All damage karma, and if your karma gets low enough you're going to wait as long as posting AC to post a comment, and your comment will start at AC level and nobody will see it anyway.
Note that "Funny" gains no karma, so making jokes is dangerous to your karma, as you risk one of the three karma-harmful mods