Genetic Engineering

Now that we’ve almost cracked the entire genetic code and know what many of the genes in our bodies do, the next step is manipulating this technology to cure diseases.

Genetically-engineered pigs have already been created to provide us with organs. There is a big shortage in the number of donor organs - in the UK alone there are 5000 people waiting for an organ transplant. To overcome the organ shortfall, a company called PPL have created genetically-engineered pigs with hearts that won’t be rejected by the human body. This is done by knocking out the genes that code for pig proteins. The actual transplant procedure to use pig hearts has not yet been approved.

Human genes are also being put into animals, so that they that produce human proteins. The creators of Dolly the sheep also engineered Polly - a cloned sheep with a single human gene inserted into her DNA. This gene codes for a human clotting factor, which is extracted from Polly’s milk and could be used to treat people with haemophilia, who cannot make this protein themselves.

Many people have serious concerns about this research. Firstly because of the fear of viruses crossing from animals into humans, just like the HIV virus is believed to have spread. Another concern is the treatment of these animals. People are questioning whether we should be using animals as mini factories to produce what we want. Many argue that animals should not be treated as mere commodities for us to manipulate.

The technology being used to create these genetically-modified animals could one day be used to genetically alter humans. In the future, couples could decide which gene they would like taken out or put in, before they have a child, resulting in, what some see, as the nightmare ‘designer baby’ scenario.

People fear this could divide the human race, creating a genetically superior master race and a genetic underclass, left to the mercy of nature. This could just be science fiction, but what is very likely in the near future is that parents will choose to have undesirable disease-causing genes removed from their embryos, creating healthier children. Only time will tell what the long-term consequences of this will be.