Human gene editing has long been controversial topic; however, precise techniques that accomplish this feat have only recently been discovered. According to the Welcome Genome Campus in the UK, the most versatile and simplest technique, called CRISPR-Cas9, allows scientists to cut, alter, or add to sections of the DNA sequence of living organisms (“What Is CRISPR-Cas9?”). This astonishing technology has nearly endless applications, including the potential to eradicate genetic diseases in humans that currently have no cure. This could have vast implications for people who suffer with disease and the economy of the region in which they live, but the technology has yet to be commercialized. The
While the benefits of gene editing are immense, there are still multiple risk factors to be considered. Nearly every type of procedure in the medical field has at least some sort of risk element, but the fact that genetic editing alters the baseline for every single intricate part of the human body poses a far greater risk of damage to the patient. Furthermore, it would be extremely difficult to locate damages caused to the patient after the procedure has been completed because of the millions of cells that make up the body. It is of utmost certainty that genetic engineering will not be an ethical solution to genetic disorders until it has been further developed. Ethical concerns, set standards, and viability all need to be tackled first before gene editing can be a usable tool. None of the articles found for this report provided substantial evidence that gene editing or genetic engineering is ready for any type of real-world application. In fact, many of them provided evidence that it is not ready for usage. Regardless, there are certainly many roadblocks that genetic engineering has yet to overcome. Until it has been proved to be viable and safe for general usage, genetic editing does not appear to be ethically justified for usage in humans in its current
Since the beginning of time, the human population has strived to live simpler lives. We have spent generations, creating innovations within technology to ensure our lives would always be more simplistic than those who lived centuries before us. People now have the ability to update their Facebook status’, map the human genome to target strands of DNA that can be disastrous to one’s health, send out amber alerts nationwide, and create plants that are resistant to pesticides. Many fields, such as medicine, law enforcement, and entertainment have benefited greatly from advancements in technology which has inevitably changed the way society operates. However, with the abundance of technology available, society has developed an unhealthy relationship where we now rely on technology too heavily. Technology has rendered our minds incapable of the ability to play, communicate, and live our lives in the moment, despite its positive additions to our society.
I found Weintraub’s article to be the most down to earth and approachable when it comes to the topic of Gene editing. In the article, she mentions several reasons why gene editing can be beneficial including stopping progressive diseases, such as dementia, completely in their tracks. Weintraub even suggests that gene editing could be used to save certain animals that are facing extinction due to genetic abnormalities or diseases. On the flipside, she brings up a very interesting point about how some parents may not want to use gene editing to heal their children, but rather to “improve” them by altering their genes to make them taller, more athletic, skinnier, etc. Weintraub also worries that utilizing gene editing this manner might end up
Gene editing has far reaching implications and the best way to address them are to encourage healthy debate, transparency in science and consider the ethical –societal impacts (Nuffield Council on Bioethics, 2016). The answers pertaining to these discourses often divergent and inconsistent however as long as discussions are happening purposefully in public we are doing something right. For technologies such as gene editing scientists developing these should shoulder the responsibility to make all empirical data and predictive model freely available to public in transparent and coherent format. Gene editing with its vast potential and applications is still not popular and accepted by the society. One of the pertinent question is what is stopping us from making gene editing a regular daily application. Public engagement, lack of regulatory regimes and ethical dilemma are three aspects that is holding gene editing intervention from expanding. In a
Based on gene editing’s current technology, I believe that it should not be a general medical practice; however, as the technology advances, professionals should be allowed to modify human genes but only restrict this to somatic cells. I believe that this distinction should be made due to the technology’s current issues and the ethics pertaining to gene modification.
Gene editing is a type of genetic engineering in which DNA is inserted, replaced or removed from the Genome or the genetic material of an organism. This treatment saved the life of one year old Layla. She was diagnosed with Leukemia and after several failed treatments, her parents turned to gene editing. Layla’s doctors performed experimental gene therapy on her, they inserted immune cells from a healthy donor into her body. The immune cells fought off the cancerous cells in her marrow.She is an example of someone’s life that was saved by gene editing.Due to the publicity this story has gotten more patients have the option of pursuing gene editing in hopes for a cure.
When thought of, technology has been known as the “brainwasher” or the “brain cell killer” but, there are a lot of positive things technology has done for the world. It has broadened the spectrum of communication, making it easier to communicate with whomever you want, wherever you please. It has also made a huge impact through the school systems. Students now use technology to do their homework, and sometimes turn it in through an online website. It can also be seen a lot in hospitals and the pharmaceutical industry. In hospitals, doctors store patient records on files found in computers, and use high-tech machines controlled by the computer to work most of the machines used on patients during operation. In the pharmacies, you can send for
Our world is in a constant state of flux. Changes are being made every second of the day, and this is only natural to life. So it shouldn’t come to a surprise with how rapidly advance our medical science is becoming. Why does nature spew new innovations? Because in order to survive, all living things have to overcome numerous obstacles in life. Therefore, scientists are constantly developing new technologies to reduce the hurdles of humans. This includes the method of genome-editing that may alter human DNA. However, there are many concern about the consequences of genome alteration as this will affect the individual and their future generation (Wade). We don’t know for certain what lies beyond this. While it makes a highly promising invention for a multiplicity of uses, could we be tampering with nature?
Medical research and discoveries have rapidly expanded in the past decade due to the advancement of technology. Genetic alterations are just one of the many discoveries made by scientists in 1973. Some people argue that genetic engineering is wrong and shouldn’t be legal, but some people think that this is a good idea and should be practiced. Genetic alterations should be accepted by society because they enhance characteristics, prevent diseases from spreading, and can give people things they never had or had the chance of getting.
Gene editing has been a big technological topic that has been talked about a lot over the last few years. Is it ethical? Does it promote social justice? Is it good for the environment? I personally do not think it promotes any of these ideas. It signifies the idea that the rich get richer, and gene editing has a huge ethical complication. Not to mention that it is not the most natural thing to be able to edit genes to someone’s liking.
Medical research and discoveries have rapidly expanded in the past decade due to the advancement of technology. Genetic alterations are just one of the many discoveries made by scientists in 1973. Some people argue that genetic engineering is wrong and shouldn’t be legal, but some people think that this is a good idea and should be practiced. Genetic alterations should be accepted by society because they enhance characteristics, prevent diseases from spreading, and can give people things they never had or had the chance of getting.
There’s really no reason to stop scientists from doing gene editing, but researchers need to be careful and no one is yet ready to do germline editing that could be passed on to future generations. Gene editing is a wonderful thing that could change the world, but I don’t think we are ready for it yet.
Human genome editing has the impact to be life altering. Human Genome editing impacts social, political, as well as ethnical issues (Kane). It can cure diseases such as cancer and save lives by allowing humans to alter genetic defects. Humans will be able to create the “perfect person.” However, human genome editing also has the impact to create fear. Adolf Hitler attempted to create the “perfect person” and all of History knows how that ended.
In order to explore the ethical landscape of genome editing, it is first necessary to discuss the range of methods, the differing goals, and the recent advances in this biotechnology. According to the director of the NIH, Dr. Francis Collins, genome editing is an “area of research seeking to modify genes of living organisms to improve our understanding of gene function and advance potential therapeutic applications to correct genetic abnormalities.” More specifically, different gene-editing technologies have the goals of “precise manipulation of gene sequences in their natural chromosomal context and addition of transgenes to specific genomic loci.” Genome editing technologies have a wide range