Technology being used in the world today has changed the world to suit us better. The changes relate on how well the people are comfortable in the world, and recount from basic needs of individuals to human aspirations such as knowledge. Changing the world does not take a basic step; it is a complicated and unpredictable process that deals with risks occurrences, unexpected costs and unexpected benefits. Technology has brought about genetic engineering.
Genetic engineering is the alteration of the genetic materials by scientific intervention in genetic process with a significance of gaining new substances or enhancing productivity in living organisms. It interferes with the genetic materials of an organism producing a different heritable materials induced outside the organism through the invasion of the DNA molecule in cells.
Genes used in genetic engineering have a high impact on health and disease, therefore the inclusion of the genetic process alters the genes that influence human behavior and traits. The establishment of genetic engineering has raised many ethical and legal questions, but its significance relies on how different individual perspire the act in their cultural, religion and ethical boundaries.
Scientist have been able to use genetic engineering as a way of creating plants, animals, and micro- organisms by manipulating genes in a way that does not occur naturally. The modified genetically organism spread though nature and interbreed with the natural organism interfering with the future generation.
Genetic engineering has its futurist obligation and its reliability on its concepts should be avoided. “For better or for worse, genetic engineering will affect the major environmental problems of our time- overpopulation, pollution, erosion and the rapid loss of biodiversity” (Anderson, 2000). We should be creative in the real world and let the world’s production be defined by nature.
Genetic engineering might cure diseases and enhance expansion of the genetic repertoire; it has enhanced food productivity and played a vital role in the agricultural sector. In genetic engineering, the DNA molecule is genetically altered through the process of gene splicing, where by the DNA strand is cut into half and joined with a strand from another species (Nuenke, 2001).
When the human DNA molecule is interfered with and joined to another strand a new DNA molecule is created and the normal genes interfered with through the convergence of the two DNA molecule strands. For example a whole chromosome may be lost or gained such as an extra copy of the small chromosome that causes Down syndrome, or part of a chromosome may ne inverted, but be fully intact.
“And they explain how dominant and recessive genes affect us and how they are transmitted from generation to generation” (Nuenke, 2001). This brings about a revolution of a new human being from its original content and transforming everything that is known in the human body.
Genetic engineering will have an effect on our world, not only on food production but will cause effects on humans and the society. From the cultural perspective, human beings are inviolable and live free according to their rights in the society.
The society accepts them the way they are and the type of life they live, therefore introducing genetic engineering in the human mode of living interferes with the basic concepts and their rights in the society: thus degrading the human subjects into objects that can be designed according to the human knowledge.
The society to accept such a change will have an effect on both the human beings and its environment which we can barely imagine. Introducing genetic engineering in the society means the interference of the parental whim and bringing an artificial generation that has different genetic material from the parental genetics.
Genetic engineering in the last few decades has tried to dominate and control nature and humans causing environmental crisis which the world faces today. Genetic engineering on plants and animal gives the power to dominate nature in an inventive and powerful way creating a lot of pressure on environmental movements. It controls nature intimidating human beings, like other species and making them objects of the manipulative control of genetic engineering.
If we cannot prevent this, then, to protect the environment will become a future burden. The environment is the main component of the relation between humans and the rest of nature. Such an environmental relationship may be soon being imposed upon us and children; hence it must take a lead in alerting the society on the dangers of genetic engineering (Anderson, 2000). Genetic engineering has the ability of transforming the children in the world from their natural assertive to being a commodity.
The application of the germline genetic engineering is believed to convert a child to a commercial product with a high degree of normality and meaning. People who will fall short of productivity will be considered as unproductive while the genetically desirable will be productive economically and politically. This would only increase discrimination in the society and the world by changing the way people live (Streiffer, 2005).
Genetic engineering has been identified with concepts such as cloning and HG E, which determines the child’s life course. The cloning system undermines the child senses and its achievement hence interfering with the genetic materials. The use of the cloning system in the society would be a disastrous concept (Streiffer, 2005).
Parents would likely make children adapt to social means with concern to physical ability, appearance and abilities, even though many of those social norms are inherently oppressive. For instance, disabled children have showed fear that the scientific technology would reduce society tolerance for those genetic losses. If genes pre-disposing people to homosexuality are discovered, it is certain that many people would attempt to engineer the genetic genes out of their offspring.
High rates of cancer and deaths will be experienced if genetic engineering is not avoided on human being. The presentation of the viral vectors that bring the alteration of the DNA molecule results to some complications such as tumors that at a later stage develop cancerous infections. When the transgenes are inverted into the genome they interfere the normal functioning of the genes and cause mutation. The introduction of genetic engineering does not predict its outcomes.
Curing diseases is one of its advantaged and certainly very few people will be against diseases such as Lesch-nyhan syndrome. Implantation genetics have been introduced in the world today to assist in the screening process of genetic diseases. This type of genetic engineering is applicable in phenotype enhancements, whereby genetic manipulation will differ on human heights or muscle mass enlargements or make people look thin.
The inventions of such genetic engineering will have an impact on people because many people will get involved in such ideas while other will neglect such ideas. Changing the inheritable genes of human will affect the structure of the society and create an economic significance through the inherited genes.
In the future generations, if genetic engineering is going to be used on human body then a total interference of the human body mechanism will be hindered. This will range from alteration of the DNA molecule which carries the genetic materials. The normal functioning of the DNA molecule will be altered by the technological introduction of genetic engineering to suit the human’s mode of life.
“A new species is characterized by the inability of its members to engage (under normal conditions) in a productive sexual union with organisms that are outside the species.” (Spier, 2002).
Scientists have come up with a way of changing the genes color, heights and body weight. Many people in the world have their own preferences according to the color, height and weight, therefore they preference having a generation that suits their preferences. Many people are in demand of having there DNA structure interfered with and undergoing a genetic engineering which alters the normal functioning of the DNA molecule (Streiffer, 2005).
Genetic engineering will transform the world completely. It has its capacity in changing the world in so many dimensions producing either positive or negative results. Concerns will be on the rise especially on our future generation especially on genetic engineering. Concerns will arise as a result of genetic engineering which will range from ethical issues to lack of enough knowledge on the effects of genetic engineering. Once the gene is altered and placed in species the process cannot be reversed again.
New introduced genes may also act differently with the natural genes and result to an effect on organism which is termed as unpredictable. After the use of genetic engineering in the world, the world will not be in the position to reverse the normal functioning of the genes, it is a process that will be continued over the next generations and to achieve the normal generation before the occurrence of genetic engineering will not be an easy process or it will not occur at all (Rabino, 2003).
In this case, scientists are ready to carry out the genetic engineering but they won’t be held responsible for the outcomes of genetic engineering. The society should be educated on the positive and negative effects of genetic engineering (Rabino, 2003).
References
Anderson, C. E. (2000). Genetic engineering: Dangers and opportunities. The Futurist; Mar/Apr 2000; 34, 2; ProQuest.
Nuenke, M. (2001). Improving Nature: The Science and Ethics of Genetic Engineering. Mankind Quarterly; spring 2001; 41, 3; ProQuest.
Rabino, I. (2003). Genetic Testing and Its Implications: Human Genetics Researchers Grapple with Ethical Issues.Empire State College, State University of New York Science, Technology, & Human Values, Vol. 28, No. 3 (Summer, 2003), pp. 365-402 Sage Publications, Inc.
Spier, R. E. (2002). Towards a new human species? Science; Jun 7, 2002; 296, 5574; ProQuest.
Streiffer, R. (2005). At the Edge of Humanity: Human Stem Cells, Chimeras, and Moral StatusKennedy Institute of Ethics Journal; Dec 2005; 15, 4; ProQuest pg. 347