The Pursuit of Genetic Engineering
Imagine a world where diabetes is effectively treated, where cancer has a cure, and where food is altered for higher quality and increased production. This “fantasy” world is on the brink of becoming a reality due to advances in genetic engineering and cloning. These medical innovations have the potential to revolutionize our lives in numerous ways. However, the fear of controversy and the fear of the “new” could hinder and possibly halt any progress that we are capable of making. There are concerns that society should carefully consider. It is important, though, to thoroughly research and examine a topic in order to understand why there should be no fear caused by cloning and genetic engineering
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Basically, there are two ways to genetically engineer an organism. The genetic material in the organism is altered, for example, by cutting some out. In other cases, genetic material is taken from one organism and put into another after being genetically altered (Walker 1). Cloning, on the other hand, is when an exact copy of something, for example, a cell, is made (Thro 107). Something in the human body, like a cell, is extracted and then tricked into reproduction, and if the process is successful, then an exact copy of the extracted cell is made (Fischer 57).
The processes for genetic engineering and cloning are similar but most certainly not the same. To understand the processes it is necessary to understand the basics of genetics and how the human body works. To put it simply, cells make up all organisms of life. Cells have many functions: they extract chemicals from the environment to feed themselves, get rid of their waste, self-replicate, and grow. These complex functions are what make cells so unique. All cells are the same size, so the number of cells that are present determines the size of the organism, not the size of the cells (Walker 4). A human’s cells are termed "multi-cellular" because many different cells are needed to make up the human body. Algae, on the other hand, are unicellular because there is only one type of cell needed to make up the organism (Walker 5-6). Cells are comprised of genes.
Cloning is a number of processes that are used to create genetically identical copies of an organism. Researchers have cloned a number of biological materials, such as genes, cells, tissues and whole organisms, including sheep 's and horses. Cloning can happen naturally in identical twins, but it can also be done in a lab. ("Cloning Fact Sheet").
It is incredible to see how far genetic engineering has come. Humans, plants, and any living organism can now be manipulated. Scientists have found ways to change humans before they are even born. They can remove, add, or alter genes in the human genome. Making things possible that humans (even thirty years ago) would have never imagined. Richard Hayes claims in SuperSize Your Child? that genetic engineering needs to have limitations. That genetic engineering should be used for medical purposes, but not for “genetic modification that could open the door to high-tech eugenic engineering” (188). There is no doubt that genetic engineering can amount to great things, but without limits it could lead the human race into a future that no one
Cloning is a biological process of making genetically copy it would be copy of a single cell or whole animal. The first mammal cloned Dolly the sheep. There are three types of cloning: they are (1) the recombinant DNA technology or DNA cloning or gene cloning, (2) reproductive cloning, and (3) the therapeutic cloning.
Clones are organisms that are exact genetic copies. Cloning originally started in the year of 1885, when a German scientist named Hans Adolf Eduard Driesch began researching reproduction. The process of producing a clone began a hundred years ago. There’s many different types of clones such as, natural clones, molecular clones, organism clones and even therapeutic clones. The first organism cloned was a salamander created by Hans Adolf. Years later, Robert Briggs and Thomas Joseph King clones a frog. Then, there was a famous organism cloned by the of name Dolly, who was the first animal sheep cloned. In order to understand the creation of life one must
Transformation is any change in an organism that alters its general character. It means “change caused by gene.” (biology-online.org) Genetic engineering is the process of manually adding new DNA to an organism. The main goal of genetic engineering is to add one or more new traits that the organism does not already have. ( ) There are many benefits of genetic engineering. With genetic engineering many illnesses and diseases can easily be prevented by isolating the gene that causes them. Also, genetic engineering has the ability to increase genetic diversity and pinpoint desirable traits of certain organisms. There are also various disadvantages of genetic engineering. For example, the process of genetic engineering is a long process that is risky and tricky. You need a variety of information in order to attempt the process. There is also debate about genetic engineering. Some people believe that it messes with the moral issues in religion.( )
Genetic modification is a scientific advancement with lots of possibilities. The most compelling argument for genetic engineering is to improve the health of society. Simple genetic mutations can easily affect one’s health. If there are effective and efficient methods to cure this, shouldn’t we do so? Or should we object to this? On what grounds? When it is, after all, the logical next step to medical advancement. It has the potential to save thousands of people from diseased lives and early death. Objections are often based on the fact that it is “unnatural” or the fear of the unknown. But so are IVF and organ transplants. It is difficult to predict with a definite certainty of what will occur in the future as a result of the actions of the present. But when has that ever stopped us? Shouldn’t we have the right to eliminate genetic diseases and push human capabilities through genetic engineering? But at what point should we draw a line on genetic modification?
Cloning is defined as the “creation of an exact copy of a living matter, such as a cell or organism” according to Encarta encyclopedia. The copies produced through cloning have identical genetic makeup and are known as clones. Scientists use cloning techniques in the laboratory to create copies of cells or organisms with valuable traits.
Genetic engineering alters the genetic makeup of an organism using techniques that introduce heritable material prepared outside the organism either directly into the host or into a cell that is then fused or hybridised with the host.[1] This involves using recombinant nucleic acid (DNA or RNA) techniques to form new combinations of heritable genetic material followed by the incorporation of that material either indirectly through a vector system or directly through micro-injection, macro-injection and micro-encapsulation techniques. Genetic engineering does not include traditional animal and plant breeding, in vitro fertilisation, induction of polyploidy, mutagenesis and cell fusion techniques that do not use recombinant nucleic acids or a genetically modified organism in the process.[1] Cloning and stem cell research, although not considered genetic engineering,[2] are closely related and
Cloning can actually occur in or outside of a lab. In the lab, modern genetic technologies can be used to porduce clones of organims. "There are three types of cloning: gene cloning, reproductive cloning, and therapeutic cloning. Gene cloning is essentially recombinant DNA technology, where a piece of foreign DNA is inserted into a vector, which can be copied by a host cell. Therapeutic cloning involves the production of patient-matched stem cells for disease treatment. Here we focus on reproductive cloning of organisms."(Cloning). In the case of reproductive cloning, the process clones and entire organism. The DNA from a donor cell gets transferred to an egg cell in which the DNA has been removed. The egg cell is “activated” and it starts splitting equally like it was fertilized. "An embryo results, and this embryo is then transferred to the uterus of a surrogate female. After gestation is complete, the surrogate will give birth to the clone, which is a genetic copy of the animal from which the original cell was taken."(Cloning). This type of artifical cloning is most often done by a process called somatic cell nuclear transfer. In SCNT, the DNA from one animal is taken and it is put into the egg cell of another. "If the egg is then placed in a
Have you ever wondered what it would be like to have a second you? The process of cloning is something that is not necessarily very new but is something that is constantly being researched and improved. Most commonly in cloning the somatic cell nuclear transfer method is used.This is when you take a somatic cell(any cell other than the sex cells) from the person being cloned and a donor egg cell and extract the nucleus from the donor egg cell replacing it with the nucleus from the somatic cell. This fuses the donor egg and somatic cell together and next is placed in a surrogate organism that gives birth to that cell that was created. That is the process of cloning an organism. The world of cloning is new and mysterious but is something that could very
Genetic engineering has to do with manipulating organisms and DNA to create body characteristics. The practice of genetic DNA has shown an increasing amount over the past years. The process of genetic enhancement involves manipulating organisms by using biotechnologies. The technique is by removing a DNA from one life form and transferring it to another set of traits or organism. Certain barriers are conquered, and the procedure involves changing a form of cells, resulting from an improvement or developed organism. GMO which is a (Genetic Modified Organisms) is the operation done in a laboratory where DNA genetic from one particular species or animals is directly forced into another gene from an unrelated subject of plants or even animals.
What if you could design your child before it was even born? What if you could cut out any life threatening diseases, make sure that your child is not susceptible to smoking addictions or alcoholism, and then make your child genius? Would you? Are you asking yourself how this could be done? Have you ever considered human genetic engineering?
When I looked up the definition for cloning on www.m-w .com it stated that cloning is to propagate a clone from or to make a copy of. A book on cloning that I read stated that cloning is genetically identical cells. Cloning’s history is as early as 1952 and the first cell transferring was in 1970. The cell process was not 100 percent accurate every time. Back in the 1970’s many scientists struggled with trying to clone something and it
Dictionary.com tells us that cloning is “a cell, cell product, or organism that is genetically identical to the unit or individual from which it was derived” (dictionary). To most people this doesn’t explain much, if anything. Livescience.com paints a relatively much clear picture using cows as their example. “It all starts with the DNA from the cell of the “donor” cow typically taken from a skin cell biopsy; once the DNA is extracted it is then inserted into an egg cell from another cow. The egg cell
He reasoned that there were certain rules by which these characteristics were inherited. He guessed that each plant must possess some sort of unit that specified its characteristics. In fact, each must have two units, one from each parent plant. If the plant inherited two different units, then one would override the other. This was called the dominant unit, and the one that was overridden was called the recessive unit. Mendel's theories were not discovered till 1900, and it began the science called genetics , the study of a physical inheritance. From this name, Mendel's units were changed into genes.