FREE ESSAY ON HUMAN GENOME PROJECT

HUMAN GENOME PROJECT

HUMAN GENOME PROJECT
Adam and Eve were doomed for trying to be like god, this is the same damnation mankind is
headed to. Everyone's dream is to have absolute power and control of everything. The
genome project and DNA engineering gives man the ability to create life and customize
life to his specific needs of likes. So how good is too good? Man's ability to make life
or create perfect human beings so they can be in a state of Utopia will disturb the
balance of nature. Every individual, every child born on earth is unique i
it's own way, not only by looks but also by their character, their DNA. Changing this by
producing two of the same kind, of which one is produced in the laboratory, unbalances
nature. A clone is a cell, a group of cells, or an organism produced by asexual
reproduction, which contains genetic information identical to the parent cell or
organism. Although some organisms produce asexually naturally, the first artificial
cloning by humans were plants developed from grafts and stem cuttings. Cloning involving
very complex laboratory techniques is a relatively recent scientific advancement in
today's world. Among these is the Genome Project, which involves the research and support
of Physical Mapping and DNA Sequencing. This would enable Humans to reproduce babies
that's what most parents want. Completing this DNA sequencing and Physical mapping would
enable us to change everything in a new born baby to the likes of the parents e.g. IQ,
Color, Strength, looks, gender, etc. 
The Human Genome Project (HGP) is a research program for analyzing the structure of the
Human DNA. This is achieved by determining the location of the one hundred thousand
genes, and finding the sequence of 3 billion base pairs. In the United States of America,
this project is overseen by 2 federal Agencies, the National Institute of Health (NIH)
through its National Center of Genome Research (NHGRI) and Office of Health and
Environmental Research (OHER). Their major goals are to: Mapping and sequencing
NA of the human Genome; mapping and sequencing the DNA of model organisms; computerized
data collection; storage and handling of the information, addressing related Ethical,
Legal, and Social implications. They recognized that mapping and sequencing the human
genome would impact everyone's life. They questioned how this new genetic information
should be interpreted and used, who should have access to it, they are concerned that the
information might result in anxiety, stigmatization, discrimination. 
The Human Genome Project has been used for the cloning of genes responsible for Duchenne
muscular dystrophy, retinoblastoma, cystic fibrosis, and neurofibromatosis. If other
diseases like these are isolated, biologists can learn about the gene's pathology of
disorders. For example, before geneticists cloned the Duchenne muscular dystrophy (DMD)
gene, to confirm the diagnosis was expensive and very uncomfortable, the tests were also
inadequate to detect carriers. But now, with only a blood sample, geneticists
an detect most mutations associated with DMD rapidly. The genome information can be used
to detect any gene mutations likely to happen to future generations of a family. 
It helps to predict which individuals have an increase susceptibility to diseases such as
heart disease, cancer or diabetes, which result from complex instructions between genes
and the environment. " When biologists compare the human genome with the genes of other
organisms, they may gain an insight into molecular evolution including human evolution."
(New tools for tomorrow's health research, 1992). Biologists could use the genes to
compare to other genes of other species, they may get more information
or perhaps even closer to finding out more about the human evolution. The HGP not only
helped in the medical field, but also in technology advancement. Its biggest challenge is
to find faster ways to map DNA, which will yield way to faster development,
faster technology. HGP provides way for new job opportunities in biotechnology, health
care, computing and information storage. As mentioned earlier, gene
information may be used to predict sensitivities to various industrial and environmental
agents. "The damages of misuse and the potential of personal threats to the personal
privacy should not be taken lightly."(to know ourselves. U.S. dept. of health)
"Gene transfer should never be undertaken in an attempt to enhance of improve human
beings… Somatic cell enhancements engineering would threaten important life values
in two ways: it could be medically hazardous, in that risks could exceed the potential
benefits and the procedure therefore could cause harm. And it could be morally
precarious, in that it would require moral decisions our society is not now ready to
make, and it could lead to an increase in inequality and discriminatory practices."
(Genet
s and Human Malleability. French Heanderson 2-1990) 
Using the information provided by Human Genome Project (HGP), a person's history of
Genetic Disorder, insurance will refuse to give him insurance coverage. "Only you have
your combination of looks, personality, and behavior. As the saying goes, they bro
the mold when you were made! There is no one in the world exactly like you." (YOUR GENES,
YOUR CHOICES. Bateer). Would like to have someone just like you created artificially?
Someone who thinks and acts like you? What if you have the same interests and have
conflicts? Having two of the same person, one being of a laboratory birth is certainly
going to unbalance nature. Who has the right to know about the info gained by HGP, when
he or she goes for genetic testing? Does a girl at the age of 10 have to know
that she has Huntington's disease? For one second, one might think she is happy and needs
to know this information, so she can make important decisions ahead of time. But the fact
is she cannot know ahead of time. How will she react to the test results?
She might be too young to cope with it. Also keeping this information secret is hard. If
the insurance companies found out about the information they will deny her coverage in
their policies. Also to get this information the girl needs to go through extensive
testing, and a Genetic Linkage study, which involves the girl to ask most of her
relatives multiple questions, which could be a heavy burden on her. 
Genetic Information leads to a lot of discrimination. Using HGP, people can produce the
"perfect" baby. If a family, especially countries where females are of a lesser
importance then males, found out that the child they are about to have is a female, t
n they would have an abortion, which is taking a life away. In the future people can use
HGP to change physical and mental states of a newborn baby. They could make it taller,
stronger, smarter, change the skin tone, the eye color and hair color, possibilities
are endless. But if everyone were to do this there will be no balance. They can bring the
dead back to life by using their DNA of the dead, and put it into a newborn. This is not
good, if someone of harmful intentions decides to bring someone like
Hitler back to life. Genetic testing is not 100% accurate. The probability of erroneous
results from a genetic test is small but not zero, false-positive or false-negative
results can occur because of technical abnormalities or human error. Some Tests suggest
that Cystic Fribrosis cannot detect all of the mutations associated with the disorders.
So where is the billions of dollars of funding going into? The Human Genome Project and
DNA cloning is a weapon aimed for total destruction of mankind. Just 
like the atom bomb, created for national security, yet once dropped on Hiroshima and
Nagasaki, Japan, by the United States of America, caused the lose of thousands of
innocent lives and hundreds to follow by mutilations due to the aftermath and the
radiation. If HGP is not restricted now, it will have a more negative impact on the world
then a positive one. It might be used to create a "super" race. Man cannot and should not
play god by trying to create life the way they want it, leave god's job to him. 
Bibliography
WORKS CITED 
"New tools for tomorrow's health research," September 1992. "To know ourselves." U.S.
Dept. of Health May 1995. "Genetics and Human Malleability," French Heanderson February
1992