'Discuss the moral and ethical issues surrounding Recombinant DNA and Gene technology'

‘Discuss the moral and ethical issues surrounding Recombinant DNA and Gene technology’

Recombinant DNA and gene technology are very controversial topics in society today. Gene technology is the manipulation of DNA to alter the genetic make-up of organisms; an example of this is recombinant DNA. This is when DNA molecules have been created by combining DNA with more than one source. The genetic modification of organisms is a vast industry, and the applications of technology are far reaching. It brings us new hope for medical cures, promises to increase yields in agriculture, and has the potential to solve the world’s pollution and resource crisis. These GMOs can be modified in three ways: adding a foreign gene, alter an existing gene or delete an existing gene. Many critics believe that these techniques should not be used as they are very morally and ethically wrong and the benefits of it must be carefully weighed against the risks to human health, as well as the health and well being of other organisms and the environment as a whole. Yet others, including some scientist’s, feel that it is a very useful and important method that needs to be widely practiced.

Over the past few years, there have been a number of revelations about the growth of genetically modified organisms. Newspapers have exploited these stories and have also carried articles debating the use of Genetically modified foods. In many countries these genetically modified foods are already underway. There are many ways in which Genetic modification can make crops more useful: Improve resistance to pests/ bacterial/fungi, Remove allergens from crops that currently contain them, Enable plants to resist cold or drought. There is also many more positives, which could help mainly the less economically developed countries as if they had crops that could resist drought then farmers would be able to grow much more types if plants, which in effect would help the whole country’s wealth increase. However, there are some concerns with this and these moral and ethical concerns are very important to consider: Mutation of transgenic bacteria may come up, Transgenic organisms might set up an evolutionary process that could harm the environment, also Eugenics is a very controversial process which is a type of gene technology.

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Transgenic techniques are used in agriculture. New types of crop plants and farm animals are produced every year. Some techniques that have been put into practice are Glyphosate resistance. Almost all plants are killed by herbicide glyphosate. A gene however was found that resisted to the herbicide, salmonella typhimurium. This gene was then transferred to maize and other plants and now can be sprayed to kill weeds growing in them without killing the plant itself. Also another method is using lectins as antifeedants. Lectins are proteins that have a glue-like effect on polypeptides, causing it to agglutinate. A gene for lectin has been transferred from pea plants to potatoes. The leaves of the transgenic potato plant then produce lectin, which protects them against insect pests. This helps farmers as it stops the pests from easting the plant. However we do not know the long-term effects it could have on humans if we were to eat these regularly. This is why using this process is being questioned very carefully, and experimented on by scientists.

There have been many involvements of genetic engineering over the past years, which have proved useful. Firstly they have extended shelf life of corn. In the year 2003, about 40% of the United States field corn crop was grown to genetically engineer corn hybrids. Because GE corn is not separated from non-GE corn by growers and processors, and because many food ingredients are corn-based, GE corn is likely to be present in most processed foods. This brang up many problems, as the gene for ripening has been switched off therefore delaying the natural process. Yet many critics believe that these GM foods will not help the world, as the genetically engineered foods are very expensive, and the farmers of developing countries will not see the benefits of it.

Plants can be engineered to produce their own insecticide and become pest resistance. Many farmers have used this type of engineering to allow their plants to become resistant to some insects. An example of this is BT corn. It is now pest resistant from the common borer species. It has been genetically modified from the bacteria Bacillus thuringiensis; it was inserted into the DNA of corn embryos. The process now works by the Bt corn offers pest resistance in the same way the original bacteria did. The Bt gene creates a protein as an insoluble crystal in the plant. This crystal is toxic and kills the borer when it eats the plant. The protein is absorbed by the cells lining and collapses these cells causing death. There are some advantages and disadvantages to this corn. Advantages are: Large quantities of pesticide are used to control borer in corn crops. These sprays have to be applied at the right times with favourable weather conditions to minimise spray drift and wash off by rain. By using Bt corn the amount of pesticide used is reduced. The plants now provide longer-term protection at all times of the growing season. However the disadvantages are that Different strains of the Bt gene target different species. This means the plant produced can be modified to kill only a specific pest. Some studies have indicated that Bt is less specific than first thought. This means that other insects are also being affected by the insecticide properties of the Bt corn or its parts, such as pollen. Some individuals will be resistant to the pesticide in the plant. If this resistance is dominant then their offspring will also be resistant to the pesticide. This issue has been acknowledged: some manufacturers are advising farmers to plant 20% of their acreage in non-Bt corn to maintain diversity in the pest population. This is a huge issue, as we do not want other pests to have off-sping that are resistant. So infact there are more cons than pros for this type of engineering, therefore showing it is not worth the problems.

It has been centuries since we discovered genetic engineering. Yet in the past decades it has been taken out of hand. Now genetic engineering can be used to broaden the classical bio weapons arsenal. There has been a lethal bacterium that has been produced for the military. It sounds like science fiction, but it is a deadly reality: lethal microbes, with no cure. Invisible to detection systems, and able to overcome vaccines this bacterium is very dangerous. Through genetic engineering, bacteria cannot only be made resistant to antibiotics or vaccines, they can also be made even more toxic, harder to detect, or more stable in the environment. By using genetic methods that are standard procedures in thousands of labs worldwide, bio weapons can be made more virulent, easier to handle, and harder to fight. In short, more effective. An Example of this is a Bacterium that causes unusual symptoms. Researchers from Obolensk near Moscow inserted a gene into Francisella tularensis, the causative agent of tularaemia and a well-known biological weapon agent. The gene made the bacteria produce beta-endorphin, an endogenous human drug, which caused changes in the behaviour of mice when infected with the transgenic bacteria. This is very dangerous as if this bacterium were to get out there would be a huge worldly uproar.

In conclusion I feel genetic engineering has been taken too far and is more of a problem to people then an advantage. Though there are many advantages like: environmental clean-ups, crop improvement and vaccine development. Yet there are also many disadvantages like pest resistance going wrong and bio-weapons made. Therefore I feel that there is more disadvantages that overcome all the advantages of it. So I believe that genetic engineering is wrong and should be stopped.