Germ-line human genetic engineering is the process of modifying a person’s genotype with the intentions of making a selection of the phenotype of a new born or even creating change on the already available phenotype of either a child or an adult. Human genetic engineering has the assumption of healing the genetic diseases such as cystic fibrosis and developing or raising the immunity of individuals to viruses. Research shows that genetic engineering may be used to make changes in the physical appearance of a person, metabolism, and also make improvements to mental faculties such as memory and intelligence. However, these changes are seen to have lower priority to individuals and thus only limited to the fictions made by the scientists. Human genetic engineering was first performed in 1990 on individuals who were ailing from severe combined immunodeficiency. However, real success for the attempts came in 2000 with this patients being able to have a functional immune system. From the research, it was noted that germ line therapy poses ethical issues and many people are against its use in all areas of treatment. Most of its opponents cite ethical considerations, even though it can treat or cure certain genetic diseases.
Germ-line Human Genetic Engineering
Germ-line human genetic engineering is the process of modifying a person’s genotype with the intentions of making a selection of the phenotype of a new born or even creating change on the already available phenotype of either a child or an adult. The main problem of this research is the use of genetic engineering in curing, treating, and making human enhancements. Therefore, this research aims at discovering whether human germ line genetic engineering is a moral /ethical or unethical problem.
Germ-line human genetic engineering is the process of modifying a person’s genotype with the intentions of making a selection of the phenotype of a new born or even creating change on the already available phenotype of either a child or an adult. Human genetic engineering has the assumption of healing the genetic diseases such as cystic fibrosis and developing or raising the immunity of individuals to viruses. Research shows that genetic engineering may be used to make changes in the physical appearance of a person, metabolism, and also make improvements to mental faculties such as memory and intelligence. However, these changes are seen to be having lower priority to individuals and thus only limited to the fictions made by the scientists. Human genetic engineering was first performed in 1990 on individuals who were ailing from severe combined immunodeficiency, thus the first therapy succeeded in 2000 with this patients being able to have a functional immune system. However, the trials had to be put to an end because it was later discovered that about quarter of the patients whom these trials were carried out on encountered problems like leukemia. The cause of leukemia is attributed to an act of inserting the gene carrying retrovirus close to an oncogene. Therefore, researchers are working on correcting that problem without tampering with the oncogene.
Despite the discontent with its usage, human genetic engineering is still being used in infertile women to a small extent so that they get a chance to have children of their own. These are women who have problems with their mitochondria, thus eggs free from any deficiency are removed from a healthy mother and then used in this process. Children made from this process possess information from two mothers but one father. Therefore, changes developed are germ-line changes and are most likely to be transferred down from one generation to another, and, hence a permanent change to the participant human genome. There have been sudden illustrations of gene alteration performed on mice and other types of animals, though trying it on human is always considered to be limited. In some cases, changes are normally brought by eliminating genetic material from one organism and taking them into another different species. Therefore, germ line engineering requires making of changes in the genes in eggs, sperm or young embryos. This type of engineering is transferable from generation to generation.
Negative genetic engineering is the process that involves treating and curing problems that occur as a result of genetic disorders. One way to perform such a treatment is through performing gene therapy. Genetic code in individuals like autism leads to genetic disorders. When this occurs, genes may react in a way that is not favorable, which may only lead to more complications. Gene therapy is mainly carried out so that a non-pathogenic virus may be used to put into DNA a better copy of the gene into cells of the healthy living people. This would thus lead to modified cells dividing up themselves as usual and every divided cell would produce cells that describe or portray the required characters. The outcome of the modification process would be that, each individual is enabled to poses or have the ability to portray the characters that were previously lacking. Therefore, research shows that, this type of genetic engineering may assist in reducing or even eliminating many diseases like cystic fibrosis, diabetes, and other diseases related to genetic (Nediljko, 2006).