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Ethics Topic: Genetic Engineering
18 Mar 2013 16 Comments
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Medical Talk 
Mar 18, 2013 @ 21:59:20
I am not sure if I am for this or against it. But I do have arguments for both sides, and think that totally banning the scientific research into genetic engineering could be a mistake. Interesting enough, scientists have started to incorporate genetic DNA vectors into our everyday living, foods and animals. For instance, tomatoes are sensitive to frost. This shortens their growing season. Fish just happen to be able to survive in very cold weather. Scientists identified a particular gene in the fish that enables them to withstand excessive low temperatures and inserted them in tomatoes. This research and end product made it possible for the growing season of tomatoes to be extended.
Sounds pretty good . . . until you really think it through. DNA restructure without time tested sure control and guarantees could be similar to trying to brush your teeth with a back hoe. Scientists are genetically modifying, and engineering new strains of DNA. They don’t know what exactly it will produce until the new vector is actually implemented. So potentially there could be a strain of grass created that replicates itself that catches and spreads a deadly virus that no one has encountered. The grass could be planted, and growing all over the place until the virus is even noticed. The grass would be eaten by birds, and the seed spread inadvertently to other crops, with the destructive value of a plague. I do not know the answer, but I am certain that there needs to be control of the technology, and the scientific research should not be something that could be available via a patent research, or be available at all to anyone except the controlled scientific environment and there should be penalties for making such technology available.
Mar 22, 2013 @ 18:27:47
I am right there with you, I don’t know if I am for it or against it. I know that it can do a lot of good but there is also a lot of bad that can come.
Mar 19, 2013 @ 14:09:41
Pros
1. can cure disease
2. help higher crop yeild
3. create things that can be of our use
4. can help save money <——– not true genetic engineering would cost a lot of money
5. cows make leaner meat
6. plants and animals grow faster
7. can save our lives
8. safer source of human medicine
9. can save endangered species of going extinct
10. can make chemicals more eco-friendly
Cons
1. can have bad side effects
2. could cause food allergies
3. could kill animals
4. could spread disease
5. could destroy
livestockhttp://wiki.answers.com/Q/What_are_the_pros_and_cons_of_genetic_engineering
Mar 19, 2013 @ 14:24:36
I am all for something that saves lives! I know that sometimes that comes at a cost. Sometimes the side effects are so painful that one would NOT want to endure them. Sometimes ypou have to weigh out the pros and cons.
Mar 19, 2013 @ 14:19:49
My mind is split…..I agree with the some of the genetically engineering in food but I do not agree with it in humans.
Mar 19, 2013 @ 14:21:25
Pros:
A Pro would be better tasting, better nutritional valuse and growth rate in crops like potato, tomato, soybean and rice. They will also have longer shelf life. Another Pro would be that they are able to produce new substances such as protiens.
Cons:
The genes of the crops would be contaminated. It could rise to new pathogens. Gene therapy in human beings can have certain side effects. While treating one defect, the therapy may lead to another.
I can’t say that I one side that I agree to more. I can see both sides and why they would and wouldn’t I do like the fact that it would make the crops taste better!
Mar 21, 2013 @ 09:49:10
This is kinda a hard topic cause there is so much to think about. I think it could be bad and it could be good just depends on the people doing it and what they are trying to do to the food.
Mar 22, 2013 @ 18:31:01
I agree with you completely, there is a lot to think about when it comes to anything that is genetically modified. What good it can do but we also have to question what we would be putting into our bodies and the long term affects of it.
Mar 21, 2013 @ 09:46:55
I think that Genetic Engineering on food is ok. There are always things you can do to food to make it better or worse for that matter, its just a matter of allergens in the food that people are allergic to that make people question it. I didn’t really know much about this but with Humans I just don’t think its right to have the abilty to do this its really not cool, but then again who knows maybe it could help
Genetic Engineering on Food
http://wiki.answers.com/Q/What_are_the_pros_and_cons_of_genetic_engineering
Pros
1. can cure disease
2. help higher crop yeild
3. create things that can be of our use
4. not true genetic engineering would cost a lot of money
5. cows make leaner meat
6. plants and animals grow faster
7. can save our lives
8. safer source of human medicine
9. can save endangered species of going extinct
10. can make chemicals more eco-friendly
Cons
1. can have bad side effects
2. could cause food allergies
3. could kill animals
4. could spread disease
5. could destroy livestock
6. 4. Costs money
Genetic Engineering on Humans
http://www.buzzle.com/articles/human-genetic-engineering.html
Pros
• Gene therapy is one of the most important benefits of human genetic engineering. Over the past decade, gene therapy has succeeded in finding treatments for certain heart diseases. Researchers hope to find cures for all the genetic diseases. This will result in a healthier and more evolved human race.
• A future benefit of human genetic engineering is that a fetus with a genetic disorder will be treated before the baby is born. Parents will be able to look forward to a healthy baby. In case of in-vitro fertilization, gene therapy can be used for embryos before they are implanted into the mother.
• Genes can be cloned to produce pharmaceutical products of superior quality. Researchers are hopeful about being able to bio-engineer plants or fruits to contain certain drugs.
Cons
• Firstly, while it seems easy to cure diseases by genetic modifications, gene therapy may manifest side effects. While treating one defect, it may cause another. Any given cell is responsible for many activities and manipulating its genes may not be that easy.
• The process of cloning can lead to risking the fundamental factors such as the individuality and the diversity of human beings. Ironically, man will become just another man-made thing!
• There are certain social aspects to human genetic engineering. This new form of medical treatment can impose a heavy financial burden on the society. Along with its feasibility, its affordability will also determine its popularity.
• Human genetic engineering is a widely growing field. It can work miracles. But its benefits and threats need to be assessed carefully. The potential advantages of the field can come into reality only if the genetic engineering of humans is handled with responsibility.
Mar 22, 2013 @ 18:26:01
I definitely think there are both good and bad things to come from genetic engineering. It is the same way I feel about anthing that has been genetically modified. There are a lot of good things that it can do for us and there is also a list of bad things that can also come from this. I believe that staying as natural as possible is the best way to go. We don’t know what the long term affects are going to be from eating genetically modified foods but I’m sure they wont be good. Here is a small list of pros and cons to be considered.
Pros:
*Better taste, nutrition and growth rate
*Pest-resistant crops and longer shelf life
*Genetic modification to produce new foods
*Modification of genetic traits in humans
*Boost positive traits, suppress negative ones
*Modification of human DNA
Cons:
*May hamper nutritional value
*May introduce harmful pathogens
*May lead to geneic defects
*Detrimental to genetic diversity
I really don’t know if the good that comes from genetic engineering is really worth all of the bad.
Mar 23, 2013 @ 12:19:26
I agree Katie, even though there are more pros then cons, I am not sure if the good is really worth it. I think there are more cons that is stated and im wondering if it will actually be good at all.
Mar 24, 2013 @ 22:37:29
I agree with you Katie. For the scientific community to implement something that has not been thoroughly tried is asking for trouble, but apparently that is what has happened. The pros out weight the cons I suppose. Still, even if the profit is there, all that it would take to reverse all the profit is for something like a virus that we are not familiar with to take hold and the whole thing goes south. At the very least, we need more research, but everyone needs to make money and it does not get generated via research.
Mar 23, 2013 @ 12:16:46
http://www.ucsusa.org/food_and_agriculture/our-failing-food-system/genetic-engineering/
I think that genetic engineering could be a good thing especially if it could really solve the food problems in the world. It is said that with genetic engineering crops would be increased, they would still grow even if there is a drought (which there have been many of those times), less pesticides used with the crops (no chemicals, YAY), and more efficient fertilizers would be used. I am not sure that it works the way they want it to though.
Mar 24, 2013 @ 14:01:41
The biggest changes for food could come when genetic engineering focuses on consumer traits. Foods could be genetically engineered to have fewer calories, increased vitamins and minerals, or have allergens removed – making peanut butter safe for everyone! The next two are the ones that I am the most interested in it shows there is an alternative to what we are doing now and I do agree with this.
Genetic engineering could provide alternative energy sources. Genetically engineered fuels are renewable and easier on the environment than fossil fuels.
Genetic Engineered Medicine
• insulin for diabetics
• factor VIII for males suffering from hemophilia A
• factor IX for hemophilia B
• human growth hormone (GH)
• erythropoietin (EPO) for treating anemia
• three types of interferons – fight viral infections
• several interleukins
• granulocyte-macrophage colony-stimulating factor (GM-CSF) for stimulating the bone marrow after a bone
marrow transplant
• tissue plasminogen activator (TPA) for dissolving blood clots
• adenosine deaminase (ADA) for treating some forms of
• severe combined immunodeficiency (SCID)
• angiostatin and endostatin for trials as anti-cancer drugs
• parathyroid hormone
Mar 26, 2013 @ 08:26:02
You have some really good points from both sides. I am kinda in the middle on this issue. I see both sides and can see why they both would benefit.
Mar 24, 2013 @ 23:52:05
Pros
Can cure disease
Better Taste
Nutrition and Growth
Pest-resistant
Crops and Longer Shelf life
Modification of Genetic Traits in Humans
Boost Positive Traits, Suppress Negative Ones
http://www.buzzle.com/articles/pros-and-cons-of-genetic-engineering.html
Cons
Can have bad side effects
May Hamper Nutritional Value
May Introduce Harmful Pathogens
May Lead to Genetic Defects
Detrimental to Genetic Diversity
While doing research on the subject my first thought was that this controversy is a lot like the arguments for cloning and genetically modified food. I feel that it is same concept don’t mess with what is there. Because we can does not mean we should.
I think that at this point in time the pros do outweigh the cons, but this is a new science that we have yet seen the ‘side-effects’ that may accompany ingestion of lots of modified foods and mammals.