Designer Babies - Unit 5

""Designer babies" is the term being used by the media to describe the future of modifying or selecting our children's genes for desirable characteristics (medical and cosmetic). Are things getting out off hand with our research into genetic processes? In this blog investigate social and ethical implications of this research and technologies that have been developed from it."

The Science Behind It
Producing a healthy baby boy or girl is no longer a matter of trial and error for hopeful parents, it is simply a matter of science (and immense wealth, of course). using reproductive technologies — in this case, pre-implantation genetic diagnosis (PGD), doctors screen embryos before implanting them, and can identify things like genetic disorders, which they can cure. They can also control more cosemetic characteristics, such as hair or eye colour. 

You can choose any traits that you want your baby to have (hair colour, etc.). Well, just ask the doctors and they'll make sure that the genetic makeup has been artificially selected by genetic engineering combined with in vitro fertilization to ensure the presence or absence of any genes or characteristics that you desire.

Let's Talk Ethics
Now, when I first read this, I immediately thought, "anyone who thinks this is a bad idea is overreacting, and doesn't appreciate the potential of this technology." However, after giving it much more serious thought, I realized that this is not the case (although there is great potential). Before writing this blog, i looked back on  my religion ISP on artificial insemination which talked about the process and advantages and disadvantages and just getting to see what other people thought about being able to pick traits of their babies and realized that this is a very debatable topic and is usually based on opinion. 



If we allow this technology to reach its full potential, yes, we speed up evolution and create almost "super" humans, but what about those who cannot afford the extremely expensive costs to design their child? It's all related to the old "the rich get richer and the poor get poorer" concept. When the babies of the poor (who aren't genetically altered) are born, now not only are they at a disadvantage financially, but now they are also at a disadvantage in terms of physical appearance and ability. The biggest worry of mine is that this technology will create something of an "elite" race of humans, which could go so far as to enslave those that they deem to be of "lesser value". Now, assuming that you have a heart, ethics, or any sense of morals, there's no way that you would let this happen, right? I mean, if we were ever able to supply this technology to everyone in the world, then perhaps I would support it. For now, the only way that I think this technology should be used is to save the life of a baby who is at severe risk of death during birth (due to genetic defects and such).


Thanks for reading my Bio Blog and feel free to post your opinion on this matter in the comments !


Sources

• http://infoproc.blogspot.com/2009/02/designer-babies.html 
• http://www.wired.com/wiredscience/2009/03/designerdebate/ 
• http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Designer_baby 
• http://www.actionbioscience.org/biotech/agar.html 
• http://wiki.answers.com/Q/Pros_and_cons_of_designer_babies

Blogs I commented on


http://virginiabioblog.blogspot.com/2011/03/how-far-is-too-far.html?showComment=1305867612994#c6715736025061006434


http://shelbysbioblog.blogspot.com/2011/01/are-we-taking-it-too-far.html?showComment=1305868690823#c4340851607388361902