Persuasive Essay On Human Genetic Engineering

Contemporary human genetics is fast becoming a force to be reckoned with. Genetics, specifically human genetics, has come a long way, with new research and ground-breaking discoveries sky rocketing in the past decade, and with new breakthroughs being made daily in both treatment of diseases, and some more unorthodox or morally challenging scientific discoveries, human genetics is at the forefront of modern day scientific research. This makes human genetics an interesting and exciting field to be in, but as exhilarating as all the breakthrough discoveries are, some can be rather daunting, as human genetics is consistently pushing the boundaries of ethics, morality and the notions of humanity we previously thought we understood so well.

Our Genetic content is the culmination of who we are: How we

If gene therapy could reach its full potential, the possibility to control many genetic disorders could come to fruition. Gene therapy is used to eliminate mutations that cause genetic disorders, such as cystic fibrosis, by replacing these mutated genes with fully functioning copies of the gene. There is a possible downside to gene therapy: viral vectors are usually the only way with which these functioning copies of the gene can be inserted into an organism, but this poses some safety concerns for the organism.

Although, if many of us were to undergo genetic engineering, or our offspring became mostly genetically engineered offspring, we run the risk of diminishing our gene pool by decreasing our genetic diversity as a specie. Could this lead to us as a species becoming susceptible to extinction by an unknown disease threat? All of this seems rather insubstantial as they could be dealt with at some point if the problem does arise. The most substantial issue is the slippery slope of ethics with its endless rhetorical and hard to answer