Bijal
09/03/2014
Should we use genetic manipulation to change the future generations of humans?
Remember to include in your answer:
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What would it mean for the future of our species?
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Do you think we should genetically manipulate ourselves?
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What sorts of things should we change and why?
Genetic manipulation is the modification of the genetic material in the DNA of a cell.
This may be in order to obtain a certain favourable characteristic or to cure a disease
or many more other reasons.
There are many things that could be done by genetic manipulation. Selective Breeding,
a type of genetic manipulation, has been used in the past to breed dogs with certain
characteristics (e.g. speed, fur colour etc.). Whilst genetic manipulation has also been
used in the past to change a bacterium’s genetic material such that it produces insulin.
(BBC Bitesize) This is something that can greatly help people with diabetes. So,
through the use of genetic manipulation humans could potentially eradicate certain
genetic diseases, inhibit certain diseases from being inherited and result in the
changing of certain characters in humans to achieve more favourable ones. For example
it may result in people changing their eye colour, height, intelligence etc. if they are
able to develop genetic manipulation greatly.
There could be many repercussions for the human race if genetically manipulating was
developed enough to change the future generations of humans. These effects can be
both negative and positive. In terms of science there could be negative effects of
genetic manipulation. It could reduce variation within the human race as selective
manipulation of certain genes runs the risk of losing some of the genes from the pool
together which is irreversible. This is bad because in the future if there is a selection
pressure (for example mass global warming) and no one has naturally evolved to be able
to overcome this pressure (to withstand the great amount of heat) then it could
potentially lead to great loss of lives. Furthermore, genetic manipulation could lead to
horrible deformations within humans especially if this practice is not perfected or
developed greatly. On the other hand genetic manipulation could be a positive. Certain
diseases that are genetic or are made more likely by genetic risk factors could be
cured. Moreover, it could lead to humans as a race become more intelligent (if the
genes responsible for intelligence are manipulated) which in turn could lead to greater
knowledge of the Earth and more revolutionary scientific discovery. Thus it is evident
that from a scientific point of view there are many pros and cons to genetic
manipulation.
Bijal
09/03/2014
There are also many social repercussion of genetic manipulation. This is because people
may use development of genetics to manipulate aspects that could easily be combated
naturally. An example is people may attempt to increase their speed by altering their
genes rather than by training hard. Although, this is not necessarily a major negative it
could potentially lead to an increase in negative habits such as laziness. Another issue is
that it may lead to an increase in gender imbalance. It has been proved in many real life
situations that when given options or put under certain pressure about the gender of
children there tend to be favouritism towards males. An example of this is in China as a
result of the One Child Policy of 1979 there has been major gender imbalance; there
are about 113 boys for every 100 girls, a result of an increase in gender selective
abortions, female infanticide, neglect and abandonment. Although, there is no proof of
there being any gender imbalance as a result of genetic manipulation, I think that to
some extent it may result in the practice of genetically manipulating embryos so that a
certain sexed child is born. Additionally genetic manipulation could result in a wider
class split. This is because those who are more wealthy may be able to use genetic
manipulation to their advantage whilst those less well of might not. Like the practice of
plastic surgery it could result in some people having lower self esteems because they
may be ‘different’ and do not have the financial backing to change this aspect about
themselves that they do not like. Thus from a social point of view there does not seem
to be major benefits that can be obtained from genetic manipulation but contrarily,
many negatives.
From an economic perspective genetic manipulation is likely to bring only benefits. This
is because if an industry of genetic manipulation develops it would result in the creation
of new jobs. This is likely to have a positive multiplier effect on the global economy as
it will bring a new job market into the service sector. Moreover, it would mean that
those scientists who are able to fully perfect the art of genetic manipulation to obtain
a favourable character such as greater intelligence may earn a lot of money and become
very rich. Hence economically genetic manipulation is likely to have a positive effect.
Overall, genetic manipulation could bring a lot of pros and cons and there are still
ethics to consider. For example some people may find it a problem if people ‘play God’
through genetically manipulation. However, I think that as a species if we can find a
way to use genetic manipulation so that the benefit outweighs the disadvantages, as in
the case of the insulin- producing bacteria, then genetic manipulation may just be the
answer to a series of problems. And so when a problem arises that is life threatening or
just really serious if genetic manipulation is a solution then maybe it should be utilised.