Download pdf - Embryonic Gene Editing Final Paper

7/24/2019 Embryonic Gene Editing Final Paper

http://slidepdf.com/reader/full/embryonic-gene-editing-final-paper 1/5

Delmas 1

Lindsey Delmas

Professor Caruso

UWRT 1103

March 1st, 201

!m"ryonic #ene !ditin$

%a&e you e&er 'ondered 'hat it(d "e li)e to ha&e no *hysical fla's+ o ris) of

inheritin$ $enetic fla's+ The United -in$dom .ust recently $a&e a**ro&al for scientists

to "e$in studyin$ human em"ryos at the early sta$es of life/ These em"ryos are ta)en

from a fertility clinic, studied under the microsco*e, and are then dis*osed of 'ithin 1

days/ With the U- $i&en the $o ahead, this has raised many fla$s in the ethics, safety, and

fundin$ de*artments of many countries around the 'orld/

o', you may "e 'onderin$, ho' is this not "ein$ called a"ortion+ ou 'ould

not "e the only one to thin) that this is *retty similar/ 4eside the fact that human em"ryos

are "ein$ dis*osed of, ho' is this different than an a"ortion, and 'hat do anti5a"ortion

acti&ists thin) of this+ 6nne 7canlan, s*o)es'oman for L89!, has s*o)en out sayin$ that

the %9!6 :%uman 9ertili;ation and !m"ryolo$y 6uthority< no' has the re*utation of

"ein$ the first re$ulator in the 'orld to a**ro&e this uncertain and dan$erous

technolo$y=and $i&en *ermission for a *rocedure that could ha&e dama$in$ far5

reachin$ im*lications for human "ein$s :7idi>ue, %aroon</ What does that e&en mean+

7canlan im*lies that 'ith the United -in$dom(s a**ro&al of em"ryonic $ene testin$, they

are o*enin$ themsel&es u* to a 'hole lot of ethical issues re$ardin$ human life and its

future "eyond this testin$/



Delmas 2

What ha**ens if this em"ryonic $ene testin$ *ro&es successful+ This testin$ could

e&entually turn scientists to *erfect the techni>ues of modifyin$ human em"ryos for

future im*lantation into a 'oman(s uterus/ These "a"ies 'ould "e *roducts of consumer

eu$enics, or "ein$ desi$ned to *ossess fa&ora"le traits, rather than unfa&ora"le traits

such as $enetic diseases that could de&elo* in the 'om"/ Consumer eu$enics, or

desi$ner "a"ies in sim*ler terms, has raised the ethics fla$, as 'ell/ Chinese researchers

ha&e *roduced a techni>ue, titled CR87PR that is su**osed to ma)e the $ene editin$

*rocess sim*ler than 'hat it(s "een in the *ast/ %enry 8/ Miller of the ational Re&ie'

>uotes =it re*resents only a "a"y ste* to'ard the ultimate $oal5 eliminatin$ terri"le

lethal $enetic diseases= :Miller, %enry 8</ %o' is it o) for an indi&idual to *ay to ha&e

their "a"y *erfectly made+ 8s e&ery "a"y made, not *erfect, .ust the 'ay it is, fla's or no

fla's, disease or no disease+

The ethics of this testin$ is 'hat has caused the lar$est u*roar in terms of

countries o".ectin$ to the a**ro&al of em"ryonic $ene editin$/ 4ut, 'hy+ 8s it the fact

that a human is "ein$ tested on then "ein$ dis*osed of+ 6re there factors of this testin$

that &iolate reli$ion+ ?ohn.oe Mc9adden, *rofessor of molecular $enetics at the

Uni&ersity of 7urrey, United -in$dom, has an o*inion/ Mc9adden is an 6n$lo58rish

scientist 'ho has co5'ritten many "oo)s *ertainin$ to life and the "iolo$y "ehind it/ %is

ancestry of 6n$lo58rish hints to me that he is Christian of some sort/ et, in the article

#ene !ditin$ is li)e *layin$ #od5 and 'hat(s 'ron$ 'ith that+ ?ohn.oe sho's a nearly

atheistic &ie' on the su".ect/ 6nti5#M :$enetically modify< acti&ists, many of 'hom are

de&out atheists, often insist that D6 is someho' s*ecial= :Mc9adden, ?ohn.oe<, 'ell,

that is "ecause D6 is s*ecial@ Aur D6 ma)es us 'ho 'e are, and isn(t e&eryone



Delmas 3

s*ecial+ Mc9adden seems to "e in fa&or of this $ene editin$, "ecause 'ho 'ouldn(t 'ant

to "e *art of the $round "rea)in$ disco&ery of eliminatin$ $enetic disease from future

$enerations+ The United 7tates and United -in$dom ha&e different reasons for 'antin$

to "e, or not to "e, *art of this/

When com*arin$ the &alues of the U/7 &ersus the U/- 8 stum"led u*on some

disco&eries that really sur*rised me/ While the United 7tates has a federal re*u"lic under

the direction of President 4arac) A"ama, the United -in$dom is under the rule of Bueen

!li;a"eth 88 in a constitutional monarchy/ o', $i&en that the U- has a**ro&ed

em"ryonic $ene testin$, 8 'ent into the lo$istics of 'hat each leader su**orts in terms of

a"ortion/ Bueen !li;a"eth 88, is a Christian monarch/ Deacon Donnelly of

*rotectthe*o*e/com $i&es reason as to 'hy the Bueen should ha&e a"dicated the throne at

the *assin$ of the 6"ortion 6ct of 1 that 'as *ut in her name/ 7ayin$ that she should

ha&e a"dicated hints that the Bueen is *ro5life, therefore 'ould li)ely AT a**ro&e

em"ryonic $ene testin$ due to 'hat ha**ens to the used em"ryos after'ard/ This *uts me

at an un)no'n in determinin$ the Bueens real stance on a"ortion/ 4arac) A"ama, on the

other hand, has si$nificantly increased the already hi$h amount of funds to'ard human

$enetic research/ While this may sound as thou$h A"ama is in fa&or of the de*letion of

human em"ryos and the $enetic modification of them, 7te*hen Latham of U7 e's says,

These fundin$ decisions 'ere hi$hly *olitici;ed "ecause human em"ryos are destroyed

in order to $enerate ne' stem5cell lines/ 4ut in fact, federal money has not "een used to

destroy em"ryos in stem5cell research/ :Latham, 7te*hen</ That "ein$ said, it has come

to my understandin$ that 'hile President A"ama stands 'ith the research of human

em"ryonic stem cell research, he 'ill not directly fund em"ryonic $ene testin$ of human



Delmas 4

em"ryos/ 8 also loo)ed at the $o&ernment and economic sta"ility of each country/ The

United -in$dom has an unem*loyment rate of /EF 'hile the United 7tates stands at

/F :United 7tates &s/ United -in$dom</ While this does not sound li)e a si$nificant

num"er, that /1F lo'er unem*loyment rate could mean thousands more .o"s here, in the

United 7tates/ With a lo'er unem*loyment rate, as 'ell as hi$her #DP *er Ca*ita, it

seems as thou$h the United 7tates 'ould "e more economically sta"le to su**ort the

a**ro&al of em"ryonic $ene testin$ than the United -in$dom, yet 'e, as a country, ha&e

yet to a**ro&e/

8n conclusion, 8 *ersonally "elie&e that the United 7tates is hi$hly unli)ely to

a**ro&e of em"ryonic $ene testin$/ While 'e are more economically sta"le and ha&e the

a"ility to *roduce funds to do so, it seems as thou$h the ethics issue raises a hi$her fla$/

That "ein$ said, it is a futuristic $oal, and 'ith many more years of trial and error, it

could "e a reasona"le $oal for the neGt $eneration/ Who )no's, may"e "y the time 8(m

ready to ha&e a child, 8 could $enetically modify himHher to *re&ent them from recei&in$

my Celiac Disease $ene/



Delmas 5

Wor) Cited

1/ Latham, 7te*hen/ IProceed 'ith Caution/I US News/ U/7/e's J World Re*ort, K9e"/ 201/ We"/ 2 9e"/ 201/

2/ Mc9adden, ?ohn.oe/ I#enetic !ditin$ 8s li)e Playin$ #od and Whats Wron$ 'ith

That+ N ?ohn.oe Mc9adden/I The Guardian/ #uardian e's and Media, 02 9e"/ 201/We"/ 2 9e"/ 201/

3/ Miller, %enry 8/ IModification of !m"ryos Will 7omeday Treat %ideous Diseases/I

National Review Online/ ational Re&ie', 2 9e"/ 201/ We"/ 2 9e"/ 201// 7iddi>ue, %aroon/ I4ritish Researchers #et #reen Li$ht to #enetically Modify

%uman !m"ryos/I The Guardian/ #uardian e's and Media, 01 9e"/ 201/ We"/ 2

9e"/ 201/

E/ IUnited 7tates &s United -in$dom/I - Country Facts Comparison/ /*/, n/d/ We"/ 29e"/ 201/

/ Wikipedia/ Wi)imedia 9oundation, n/d/ We"/ 2 9e"/ 201/