Introduction
In my case study I will be discussing should designer babies be allowed? I will be looking at what designer babies are, how would they be achieved? as well as the pros and cons of designer babies. I will also review the possible effects that having designer babies has.
Explanation of designer babies
A designer baby is the word used to describe the act of genetically modifying the genes of babies. They can also screen embryos for any disorders and could even been uses for modification of characteristics such as gender eye colour and even intelligence. Advanced technologies have allowed doctors to be able to screen embryos for any genetic disorders to enable them to select healthy embryos. It is now also possible to use these advanced technologies to select the gender of a child. Through In vitro fertilization people believe that we will be able to use the genetic technologies to modify these embryos to choose the wanted characteristics of a child. The term designer babies come from how journalists describe this possible situation but this is not a term used by scientist although in 2004 the term was put into the Oxford English dictionary. http://www.bionetonline.org/English/content/db_cont3.htm This is a reliable source because the information is written by specialist and I also looked up the word designer baby in the dictionary and used the information I found.
How are designer babies made?
The act of modifying the genes of an embryo for reasons such as to prevent disease or gender selection can be achieved as shown in the diagram below. http://www.theage.com.au/articles/2003/03/11/1047144972401.html This diagram shows the process of genetic screening which is based on the testing embryo for any defects that may be in the genes such as genetic diseases. The process starts with the women being given fertility drugs so that she will product more than just one egg in her next menstrual cycle. These eggs are then
Bibliography: http://www.bionetonline.org/English/content/db_cont3.htm (2002) http://www.fertility-docs.com/fertility_gender.phtml (2001-2010 The Fertility Institutes) http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Designer_baby (last modified on 31 January 2010) http://www.buzzle.com/articles/pros-and-cons-of-designer-babies.html (By Priya Johnson Published: 7/13/2009) Complete idiot’s guide to understanding cloning (Jay D. Gralla, Preston Gralla) 2004 http://www,bionetonline.org/English/content/db_cont3.htm http://online.wsj.com/article/SB123439771603075099.html Gautam Naik Printed in The Wall Street Journal, page A10 http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/scotland/955672.stm (Wednesday, 4 October, 2000,) http://us.toluna.com/polls/3736/If-gender-selection-were-become-accurate-inexpensive.htm (8/1/2009)