How Will Genetic Engineering Impact Our Lives? :: Expository Essays Research Papers

How will our lives change in the future? Are we as a society going to live longer because we have better medical treatments? The answer is most likely, yes, but will our genetic manipulation/sequencing take us to a new level. Instead of living to one hundred, will we be able to live to two hundred? More importantly, is this ethically correct to create a â€Å"fountain of youth† through genetic correction? An article I read recently helped me to draw some understanding. Thus far, researchers have had minimal success in using gene therapy to correct most genetic conditions and no researcher has used gene therapy to correct genetic impairments in a fetus (Parens). Although it is impossible to correct genetic flaws, we have discovered how to test for over 400 conditions, from those viewed as severe, such as Tay Sachs, to those that many might describe as relatively minor, such as polydactyly (a trait involving an extra little finger) (Parens). As it gets easier to test for these genetic disorders, so does the perception within both the medical and broader communities that prenatal testing is a logical extension of good prenatal care. On the other hand, as long as in-utero interventions remain relatively rare, and as long as the number or people seeking prenatal genetic information to prepare for the birth of a child with a disability remains small, prospective parents will use positive prenatal test results primarily as the basis of a decision to abort fetuses that carry mutations associated with disease or disability (Parens). â€Å"†¦There is a sense in which prenatal testing is simply a logical extension of the idea of good prenatal care† (Parens). Whether it is a logical extension or not, using prenatal tests to prevent the birth of babies with disabilities seems to be a good decision to many people (Parens). Even if the testing will not help bring a healthy baby to term this time, it gives prospective parents a chance to try and conceive again (Parens). â€Å"To others, however, prenatal testing looks rather different. If one thinks to appreciate why people identified with the disability rights movement might regard such testing as dangerous. For the members of this movement, including people with and without disabilities and both issue-focused and disability-focused groups, living with disabling traits need not be detrimental either to an individual's prospects of leading a worthwhile life, or to the families in which they grow up, or to society at large† (Parens). How Will Genetic Engineering Impact Our Lives? :: Expository Essays Research Papers How will our lives change in the future? Are we as a society going to live longer because we have better medical treatments? The answer is most likely, yes, but will our genetic manipulation/sequencing take us to a new level. Instead of living to one hundred, will we be able to live to two hundred? More importantly, is this ethically correct to create a â€Å"fountain of youth† through genetic correction? An article I read recently helped me to draw some understanding. Thus far, researchers have had minimal success in using gene therapy to correct most genetic conditions and no researcher has used gene therapy to correct genetic impairments in a fetus (Parens). Although it is impossible to correct genetic flaws, we have discovered how to test for over 400 conditions, from those viewed as severe, such as Tay Sachs, to those that many might describe as relatively minor, such as polydactyly (a trait involving an extra little finger) (Parens). As it gets easier to test for these genetic disorders, so does the perception within both the medical and broader communities that prenatal testing is a logical extension of good prenatal care. On the other hand, as long as in-utero interventions remain relatively rare, and as long as the number or people seeking prenatal genetic information to prepare for the birth of a child with a disability remains small, prospective parents will use positive prenatal test results primarily as the basis of a decision to abort fetuses that carry mutations associated with disease or disability (Parens). â€Å"†¦There is a sense in which prenatal testing is simply a logical extension of the idea of good prenatal care† (Parens). Whether it is a logical extension or not, using prenatal tests to prevent the birth of babies with disabilities seems to be a good decision to many people (Parens). Even if the testing will not help bring a healthy baby to term this time, it gives prospective parents a chance to try and conceive again (Parens). â€Å"To others, however, prenatal testing looks rather different. If one thinks to appreciate why people identified with the disability rights movement might regard such testing as dangerous. For the members of this movement, including people with and without disabilities and both issue-focused and disability-focused groups, living with disabling traits need not be detrimental either to an individual's prospects of leading a worthwhile life, or to the families in which they grow up, or to society at large† (Parens).