Genetic technology - Dissertation Example

ability to define such a question implies that genetic technology confronts us with moral judgment and moral actions, such as the existential understanding of oneself as a person and as an equal member of the human species. These fundamental arguments might be the reason why an agreeable standard of regulation and guidelines of research in genetic technology have not been formulated. Chapter 1 The Science and Application of Genetic Testing “It has not escaped our notice that the specific pairing we have postulated immediately suggests a possible copying mechanism for the genetic material” ~ Watson & Crick (1953) Introduction This chapter introduces a brief account of how the science of molecular biology emerged to a stage where it was ambitiously initiated by the Human Genome Project (HGP).

Thus this chapter describes how the HGP came into being and the science behind the project. This chapter also delves into an introduction of the application of genetics and with it, an introduction of the imposed new choices and responsibilities faced by humans individually and as a society. Because diagnosis of genetic diseases without hope of cure is likely to be a norm for many years to come, the present ethical issues are likely to focus on prenatal diagnosis, and the early termination of affected pregnancies, which is the central theme of genetics and thus this research study (Habermas 2009, Kass 2006, Mallia 2008, Singer 1993, Beauchamp 2005).

Implicitly, this research study reveals that abortion to prevent birth of a child, considered ‘handicapped’, is morally wrong, and that human beings are more than mere transmitters of genetic information. Background and Overview Fig 1: DNA double helix. Source: US national library of medicine, “What is DNA?” 2011 James Watson. This chapter introduces a brief account of how the science of molecular biology emerged to a stage where it was ambitiously initiated by the Human Genome Project (HGP).

Thus this chapter describes how the HGP came into being and the science behind the project. This chapter also delves into an introduction of the application of genetics and with it, an introduction of the imposed new choices and responsibilities faced by humans individually and as a society. Because diagnosis of genetic diseases without hope of cure is likely to be a norm for many years to come, the present ethical issues are likely to focus on prenatal diagnosis, and the early termination of affected pregnancies, which is the central theme of genetics and thus this research study (Habermas 2009, Kass 2006, Mallia 2008, Singer 1993, Beauchamp 2005).

Implicitly, this research study reveals that abortion to prevent birth of a child, considered ‘handicapped’, is morally wrong, and that human beings are more than mere transmitters of genetic information. James Watson & Frances Crick (1953), were the first to discover the structure of the double helix, and decoded its embedded sequence of nucleotide proteins, known as DNA or deoxyribonucleic acid. In recognition of their discovery, Watson and Crick were subsequently awarded the Nobel Prize in 1962.

Specifically, the award was for the discovery of DNA, “the molecular structure of nucleic acids and its significance for information transfer in living material”.