Category Archives: Human Genetic Engineering

When you take a close look at the human body it is easy to see that it is not without imperfection. This means that some bodies are built with inherent flaws and others fail over time. Science has the ability to change the way that humans are made and alter the flaws that are known. This can be done through the process of human genetic engineering. Altering the technology in humans is a topic that causes a lot of controversy. Human genetic engineering is something that people are either very passionate about or opposed to completely. Differing opinions on this issue drive forward the debate.

1. End Disease Human genetic engineering relies heavily on science in technology. It was developed to help end the spread of diseases. Using human genetic engineering it could be possible to change the way genomes are constructed to end some diseases. Genetic mutations can be to blame for certain diseases including Cystic Fibrosis, but with the help of human genetic engineering it could be possible to end this disease completely. If the complete benefits of human genetic engineering therapy are ever seen, it could have a huge impact on disease as a whole.

2. Longer Life Without certain diseases to increase death rates and decrease life span, it would be possible for more individuals to live longer and healthier lives. This means that human genetic engineering has the potential to improve the quality of life and allow for longer life spans. Reversing some of the cellular causes for decline of the body could be possible if strides are made with human genetic engineering.

3. Eliminating Illness and Disease in Unborn Children One of the largest benefits of genetic engineering is the prospect of helping cure illness and diseases in unborn children. Having a genetic screening with a fetus can allow for treatment of the unborn. Overtime this can impact the growing spread of diseases in future generations.

1. Ethical Issues Many of those opposed to human genetic engineering have their opinion based on ethical views. The belief that god should have ultimate power and we should not be altering nature is what many think should halt the progression of human genetic engineering. The power to shape the human race should not be left up to us humans, because there is divine intervention at work.

2. Safety Issue There are still many different unknowns linked to human genetic engineering. This brings up issues involving of safety. Getting genes into the human body is a complex process that could go bad very easily. The extent to the consequences if it goes bad are not fully known and could be quite devastating. The success rate is also something that brings up concern.

Some feel that more research needs to be done to further human genetic engineering technology, but others feel that this type of engineering has no place in society at all.

In order to obtain a full opinion on the topic of human genetic engineering, it is imperative that you gain a deeper understanding at the most basic level. It is essential that you know exactly what is meant by the concept of human genetic engineering and what it entails. This can be a very complex process, but you can break it down somewhat. In basic terms, human genetic engineering is a way to manipulate genes to make the human body closer to perfection. The altering of the genome has the ability to happen in the sperm or the egg cell. This type of genetic engineering is also referred to as germ line gene therapy and has the ability to change some of the traits a child is born with. The changes that are made through the child using germ line gene therapy would then be inherited traits that would be passed down for generations.

There is also another type of human genetic engineering that involves trading in a bad gene for a good one. This is done in the cells, but does not include the sex cell, which is the process of human genetic engineering refereed to as somatic cell gene therapy. To complete this process of human genetic engineering, functioning genes are fired into the human body to remove the bad function of the inferior gene. This technology does exist to some extent, but it has not been perfected and does not yet have a high success rate.

It is pretty difficult to classify such a complex issue as either good or bad. It is so much more complicated and hard to decipher than that. This issue brings up questions of ethics and often causes outrage among both sides. The only way to gain your own unbiased opinion on the topic of human genetic engineering is to look at both the pros and cons. Not everything involving this issue is a positive, but it is not all negative either.

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5 Key Pros and Cons of Human Genetic Engineering | NLCATP.org

Pete Shanks has written a terrific introduction to human genetic engineering and the fraught issues it raises. The basic question he takes on: How do we get what's good out of human biotechnology, but make sure we don't wake up one morning and find ourselves in GATTACA?

"Guide to Human Genetic Engineering" covers the cloning of people and pets, "transhumanism," eugenics, sex selection, designer babies, gene doping, stem cells, and more. It welcomes beneficial uses of biotechnology, but cuts through the techno-boosterism that characterizes far too much of the current public discussion of these issues.

The book's appearance is engaging, with a table or pull quote or something else visually interesting on almost every page. The writing is top-notch -- entertaining, even funny and intermittently irreverent, but without ever losing sight of the seriousness and importance of the subject matter. The author clearly explains the technical basics, and goes beneath the surface of the political and social controversies, but not so deep as to lose "perplexed" or simply curious readers. He makes it clear what he thinks, but it's obvious that he respects what others think too.

I recommend this book very highly.

Link:
Human Genetic Engineering: A Guide for Activists, Skeptics ...

Human body is made up of both good and bad genes. The genes which may cause some disease or some unwanted traits can be altered using a branch of biotechnology known as genetic engineering. Genetic engineering is a technique which can be used to manipulate our genes to make our bodies better. This change can be done in sperm or egg level, but this is illegal in most of the countries.

The other way is to change our bad genes with the good ones in somatic cells. Good genes are cloned into a viral vector, and then these vectors are passed into our body using gene gun method or other methods. Somatic cell genetic engineering is done in many countries.

Advantages of Genetic Engineering in Humans:

1. Genetic engineering has the capacity to make disease a history. Almost all humans are prone to one form of the disease or the other. This disease may be a result of inheritance of bad gene from parents. Other reason could be genetic mutations in the genome because of the environmental mutagens. These genetic mutations cause diseases like cystic fibrosis, Alzheimer's, or heart diseases and also these mutations can make human body susceptible for infections. All these mutations can be reversed using genetic engineering. If the researchers can find an efficient way to replace bad genes with the functioning copy of gene in the correct position.

2. Genetic engineering has the potential to increase the life span of humans. Some scientists say that the by using genetic engineering average life span of a human can range anywhere between 100-150 years. Here genetic engineering technique is used on a healthy individual to change his genome in such a way that it slowdowns the aging process. Altering the genes which are related to aging and cell senescence. For example preventing the shortening of telomere length of a chromosome. As telomere shortening plays an important role in cell senescence and aging.

3. Better understanding of genetics with the help of genetic engineering may lead to better pharmaceutical products which will have the ability

Disadvantages of Genetic Engineering in Humans:

1. At present since the genetic engineering uses the viral vector to carry functional gene into the human body, consequences of these viral genes on human body is still not known. Still we don't know the exactly where the functional genes are placed in the genome. Functional genes may replace the other important genes other than the mutated gene. This may lead to other form of disease or conditions in human.

2. If we all change the defective gene with the functional gene, genetic diversity will become thing of past. As we all humans will have the same genome, as a population we may become susceptible to an unknown form of disease or virus and it may lead to the extinction of human population from the earth.

Therefore we must use this new technique known as genetic engineering with lot of cautions as it has got both advantages and disadvantages to mankind.

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The Advantages and Disadvantages of Genetic Engineering in ...

Human genetic engineering is but one aspect of the overall field of Human Biotechnology. It is the most fascinating aspect of Human Biotechnology with the power to improve everyones quality of life, healing all of our genetic diseases permanently. We will soon be able to improve our mental, physical, and emotional capabilities. Well be able to introduce regenerative functions natural in other animals, increase longevity, and ensure a healthy diversity in the human genome. It carries the promise of enabling humanity to survive a wider range of environments on alien worlds ensuring our long term survival.

In this section of the website we have several articles on exactly what genetic engineering is, up to the state of the art, how it is accomplished, how we humans have been engaged in the activity for our own betterment for thousands of years, and how we can and are applying it to humans.

In addition to just the facts we also have a number of speculative articles that extrapolate the plausible, the probable, and the very unlikely in our exploration of the many paths to the future of human evolution.

The menu to the right has links to our genetic engineering articles.

Human Genetic Engineering: Improving the Quality of Life Now. Ensuring the Diverse, Robust Future of Human Evolution.

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Human Genetic Engineering - The Future of Human Evolution

Human genetic engineering is about genetically engineering human beings by modifying their genotypes before birth. The Genotype is the genetic constitution of an individual with respect to a particular character under consideration. The engineering is done to control the traits possessed by the individual after his/her birth.

The cells of our body contain encoded information about the body's growth, structure, and functioning in the form of genes. Human genetic engineering aims at decoding this information and applying it to the welfare of mankind.

There are two types of genetic engineering. They are:

In human genetic engineering, the genes or the DNA of a person is changed. This can be used to bring about structural changes in human beings. More importantly, it can be used to introduce the genes for certain positive and desirable traits in embryos. Genetic engineering in humans can result in finding a permanent cure for many diseases.

There are people with certain exceptional qualities. If the genes responsible for these qualities can be identified, they can be implanted in the early embryos. This can lead to something like 'customized babies'. Human genetic engineering might progress to such an extent that it will be possible to discover new genes and embed them into unborn babies.

The Brighter Side 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.

The Darker Side Firstly, while it seems easy to cure diseases by genetic modifications, gene therapy may produce 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 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 genetic engineering of humans is handled with responsibility.

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Human Genetic Engineering - Buzzle

In Vivo : Selected Stories of Genetic Engineering (1996)- Robert Wyrod This experimental documentary examines the frontiers of human genetic engineering. It explores the ethical terrain of the e... | more... In Vivo : Selected Stories of Genetic Engineering (1996)- Robert Wyrod This experimental documentary examines the frontiers of human genetic engineering. It explores the ethical terrain of the emerging field of human gene therapy research and includes original interviews with the leading scientists working in this area. Director: Robert Wyrod Producer: Robert Wyrod Keywords: genetic; engineering; gene therapy; DNA; experimental; clone; molecular Contact Information: robertwyrod@gmail.com Creative Commons license: Attribution-Noncommercial 3.0 Human genetic engineering is the genetic engineering of humans by modifying the genotype of the unborn individual to control what traits it will possess when born.[1] Humans do not need gene therapy to survive, though it may prove helpful to treat certain diseases. Special gene modification research has been carried out on groups such as the 'bubble children' - those whose immune systems do not protect them from the bacteria and irritants all around them. The first clinical trial of human gene therapy began in 1990, but (as of 2008) is still experimental. Other forms of human genetic engineering are still theoretical, or restricted to fiction stories. Recombinant DNA research is usually performed to study gene expression and various human diseases. Some drastic demonstrations of gene modification have been made with mice and other animals, however; testing on humans is generally considered off-limits. In some instances changes are usually brought about by removing genetic material from one organism and transferring them into another species. There are two main types of genetic engineering. Somatic modifications involve adding genes to cells other than egg or sperm cells. For example, if a person had a disease caused by a defective gene, a healthy gene could be added to the affected cells to treat the disorder. The distinguishing characteristic of somatic engineering is that it is non-inheritable, e.g. the new gene would not be passed to the recipients offspring. Germline engineering would change genes in eggs, sperm, or very early embryos. This type of engineering is inheritable, meaning that the modified genes would appear not only in any children that resulted from the procedure, but in all succeeding generations. This application is by far the more consequential as it could open the door to the perpetual and irreversible alteration of the human species. There are two techniques researchers are currently experimenting with: Viruses are good at injecting their DNA payload into human cells and reproducing it. By adding the desired DNA to the DNA of non-pathogenic virus, a small amount of virus will reproduce the desired DNA and spread it all over the body. Manufacture large quantities of DNA, and somehow package it to induce the target cells to accept it, either as an addition to one of the original 23 chromosomes, or as an independent 24th human artificial chromosome. Human genetic engineering means that some part of the genes or DNA of a person are changed. It is possible that through engineering, people could be given more arms, bigger brains or other structural alterations if desired. A more common type of change would be finding the genes of extraordinary people, such as those for intelligence, stamina, longevity, and incorporating those in embryos. Human genetic engineering holds the promise of being able to cure diseases and increasing the immunity of people to viruses. An example of such a disease is cystic fibrosis, a genetic disease that affects lungs and other organs. Researchers are currently trying to map out and assign genes to different body functions or disease. When the genes or DNA sequence responsible for a disease is found, theoretically gene therapy should be able to fix the disease and eliminate it permanently. However, with the complexity of interaction between genes and gene triggers, gene research is currently in its infancy. Computer modeling and expression technology could be used in the future to create people from scratch. This would work by taking existing DNA knowledge and inserting DNA of "superior" body expressions from people, such as a bigger heart, stronger muscles, etc and implanting this within an egg to be inserted into a female womb. The visual modeling of this process may be very much like the videogame Spore, where people are able to manipulate the physical attributes of creatures and then "release them" in the digital world. | less...

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Bioethics Of Human Genetic Engineering - Documentary Video ...