Gene Therapy
Introduction- Outline the essay/ what is gene therapy
Genes are “…. the basic physical and functional unit of heredity.” The offspring receives two of the same gene from each parent and these genes make up chromosomes. A male has an X and a Y chromosome while females have two X chromosomes. Genes are made up of DNA that, “….act as instructions to make molecules called proteins” within the body. However in some cases genes received from parents have been implemented by disease and the offspring can receive a genetic condition. A genetic condition is caused by a mutation or alteration to a set of genes in the DNA and it can be X-linked or autosomal. In new age technology these genetic conditions can be able to be cured by Gene
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“Genes are paired- one copy of each gene pair is inherited from the mother and the other copy from the father.” If a genetic disorder is a shown trait through an individual the way it was inherited is through one of these two genes in the pair is abnormal and contains a extra gene. “Around 6,000 known genetic disorders are caused by inheriting an altered gene.” Down syndrome is one of these diseases with an extra affected chromosome (21). Down Syndrome affects physical growth and gives a person a disability in knowledge and development. It is an incurable disease and a individual must be born with it to occur. Cystic Fibrosis is another gene disorder it affects the lungs and digestive system and slowly decreases the effectiveness of its workings. Muscular dystrophy a disorder that can either start from birth or into late 40s depends on what type of genetic type of disease the person possesses. The disease slowly eats away at muscles and eventually leaving an individual struggling to move and slowly dying. PKU causes brain damage another genetic disorder can be detected from birth. Hereditary Hemochromatosis is apart of these genetic disorders and it is quite common “approximately 1 to 6 people in the United states”. This disease has no shown trait however it causes an iron overload in the body. The symptoms can be bad or not as effecting it is different with every person who has the disease. In all genetic disorders they aren’t common to all start from birth each can start from young to old and it is unknown to if a person has a disease until the symptoms
Genetic diseases are pathological diseases caused by the absence or alteration of one or several genes in the cells of an organism. Most genetic diseases are caused by the inheritance of an altered or missing gene from either one or both of your parents. Because the altered gene is in every cell in your body, including your stem cells, it is practically impossible to physically alter the gene. The only possible effective way that has been found is gene therapy.
Genetic disorders are present from birth, but they may not be visibly seen until a later age. Some mutations could be heritable, or from your parents genes. Some forms of cancer can be inherited form a parent. Although, in most cases, these mutations are new changes to the DNA. “All humans have the same basic set of genes”. This means that everyone has the probability that they could get a genetic disorder. The thing that makes us different is the
Would you consider altering your DNA if it could save your life? Scientist have been working on gene therapy since the 1970's, this biotechnological form of medicine is the attempt to medically modify cells to help eliminate or prevent diseases by correcting defective genes. Imagine the possibilities of having your DNA tested for heritable diseases and being able to eliminate such diseases from your future.
There are many known genetic diseases in the world. There are different types such as chromosomal and monogenic. Chromosomal disorders are when someone has too many or not as many chromosome as they are suppose to have (46 total chromosomes). Chromosomal disorders can also manifest when there are structural abnormalities. Monogenic disorders are an inherited medical condition caused by a DNA abnormalities. These diseases occur all throughout the world today. Depending on what region of the world you are in depends on what the most common ones are. Cystic Fibrosis has become the most common lethal genetic disease in the United States as of 1999. Although there are treatments available, there is not a known cure, and the effects remain burdensome
Human genetics can play a major role in determining ones physical condition. One slight change in a genetic sequence can cause a disorder that can be life threating to the organism. Most of the genetic disorders are caused by recessive allele. In most cases this recessive allele is undetectable due to the disorder not being presented in the physical appearance. Hypercholesterolemia is an example of a human disorder controlled by a single gene. This human disorder causes high levels of cholesterol in an individual due to the absence of the low-density lipoproteins.
Well, it’s quite simple. Genes are within every single one of our cells that make up our bodies. Genes tell our cells how to reproduce new cells to replace damaged or worn out cells. Without genes, cells could not replicate themselves in the way that is necessary
Genetic disorders or heredity diseases are disorders that are caused by a missing gene, abnormal gene, or chromosomal characteristic (The Free Dictionary, 2007). There are to me found many genetic disorders. Klinefelter syndrome is an example of a genetic disorder. Klinefelter syndrome affects the male rather than female (“47, XXY”, 2016).
I agree with you that there was a conflict of interest which caused Dr. Wilson to continue with the testing even though a participant died from complications. Based on your explanations, I agree that sanctity of human life should outweigh the other principles. Plus, ethics demands that we never allow scientific examination to undermine the interests and inherent value of the distinctive human being who unselfishly enroll in such research.
Deoxyribonucleic acid (DNA) was discovered in 1944 by Avery and colleagues. Avery identified DNA as the primary genetic material. Watson and Crick later discovered the double helix structure of DNA. Leder and co-workers deciphered the triple nucleotide code that designated the amino acids from which proteins were built. The science of molecular biology was born (Sokol, Gewirtz, 1996). In 1990 a four year old girl who was suffering from severe combined immunodeficiency (SCID) was the first to undergo gene therapy. White blood cells were removed from the girl and the cells were inserted with normal copies of the defective gene and returned into the girls circulation. Her condition improved with four treatments and
Genes is the physical and functional unit of heredity which are made up of DNA. It carries the information of that determines traits that are passed on by the parents. There are two copies of genes which comes from each parents which is to be exact twenty chromosome from each parent to make up forty six chromosome in a baby. As by the
When a person is affected by an autosomal recessive disorder, both copies will be mutated in these genes. When a person has been diagnoses with an autosomal recessive disorder, the parents will each be a carrier of one copy of each mutated gene, however, they will typically not display any signs of symptoms of having this condition. Autosomal recessive disorders are not necessarily passed down to each and every generation, but can also skip generations as it transforms. Some well-known diseases that are autosomal recessive are cystic fibrosis, as well as sickle cell anemia.
When a certain gene is known to cause a disease, it is referred as a single gene disorder or a Mendelian disorder. These disorders involve mutations in the DNA sequences of single genes. As a result, the protein the gene codes for is either altered or missing (Landsverk, 2013). Few examples of single gene disorders includes cystic fibrosis, sickle cell disease, Fragile X syndrome, muscular dystrophy, or Huntington disease. As a rule, single gene disorders are not very common. For example, only one in 2,500 people are born with cystic fibrosis. There are a number of inheritance patterns of single gene disorders that are predictable when you know what they are. There are three main transmission patterns: autosomal-dominant, autosomal-recessive, and X-linked or sex-linked recessive (Mahdieh, 2013).
The word science comes from the Latin word "to know" (Science Made Simple, 2014). In
“Although we are all members of a single species, we differ from one another in such visible traits as the color of our skin and the shape of our noses, and in biochemical factors such as our blood types and our susceptibility to certain diseases” (Sheridan College Institute of Technology and Advanced Learning, 2013, p. 34). To understand human physical development and evolution one has to understand biological anthropology as the focus on humans as biological organisms. Biological anthropologist conduct research, and form techniques of modern molecular biology to learn about human variation and how it relates to different environment humans lived in as well as their conditions.
Some of the things that a child carry can be genetically past down, such as one parent with green eyes and the other with brown eyes. Genetics can also predict the chances of the child having a disease. Some of the disease that are be passed down are sickle cell anemia, which is when the blood cells are abnormal. Down syndrome is when too many chromosomes was develop then causes mental and physical retardation. Muscular dystrophy is when muscles weaken and waste away. If the family knows that they have a history of disease, then they have the option of going down the germ-line gene therapy that is alter of genes. By doing this the doctor alter the mother eggs, the farther sperm, or the embargo in only a few days. For an example, if the mother has sickle cell anima and the father has a history sickle cell anima in the family as well, then mostly like her child will have sickle cell anima as well. However, if the family go through with the germ-line gene therapy the child will not develop or have traits of sickle cell anima. Genes are biological unit, as well as in a specific area in a chromosomes which is a major part of heredity. Each gene that we have carries information that