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Yolanda Devere |
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The
mapping of the genes
in the human body
by
the HGP
has caused great excitement
in the scientific world.
It will be a
major step forward
for
mankind.
But it also brings
difficult moral problems. |
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The scientific discoveries
made in the 1990s are beginning to help us understand how we are made.
The
breakthrough came in 1953 when the structure of DNA
(deoxyribonucleic acid) was explained.
DNA is the code by which the cells in our body know what to become
before we are born. Since then, scientists have been trying to
understand how DNA controls our lives and
passes on genetic
diseases to
our children. DNA, itself,
is made up of four similar chemicals whose
order, or sequence, needs to be understood if medicine is to benefit.
The
results of
this research are all around us. Now we have DNA ‘fingerprinting’
which is used
to
solve crimes, and new understanding of some cancers. We
also have methods to detect genetic disease. The Human Genome Project
(HGP) is about to announce the order or sequence for the whole set of
genes that make up our DNA – the human genome.
The Human Genome Project was started in 1990. This international project
had a very ambitious
goal: to define the human genome by 2005.
Scientists were confident that new discoveries would allow them
to
achieve this goal. It meant recording not just the 80,000 human genes in
us, but also the 3 billion or more similar chemicals (chemical bases)
that make them up – in the right order or
sequence.
At the start of the project, a research student who correctly identified
a few thousand chemical bases
earned a doctorate. Today a modern genetic
sequencing machine no bigger than a desktop computer reads 500,000
chemical bases in one day. The equipment has been made smaller,
automatic and much cheaper.
In fact,
the rate of new discoveries has been
so great that the Human Genome Project is 5 years ahead of schedule.
Big business has been quick to take an interest. Some of the genes that
cause certain types of cancers have even been patented. Francis Collins,
the head of the American Human Genome Project laboratories, is
alarmed:
‘The human genome ought to be the common inheritance of
all humankind.
We are worried that the sequence might
get tied
up in patents, licences and
secrecy agreements.’
However it is a long way from knowing which genes cause a disease to
knowing how to cure that disease. Genes rarely have a single effect that
can be identified easily. Often many genes work together to make
something happen, and over 80% of our genes seem to have no useful
function at all.
The mapping of the genetic sequence by the Human Genome Project marks
the beginning of a whole new age for biology and
will raise new problems
that ordinary people will have
to face.
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PREDICTING
YOUR FUTURE |
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The
stress of knowing that you may develop cancer, for example, might be too
much. Your marriage may
break
up. You may become very depressed. And
what if the diagnosis says that
you are 25% more likely to
develop cancer? Does this help you to plan your life? Or is it
just a worry that you can really do nothing about? |
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CONTROLLING
YOUR CHILDREN |
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What
if
parents were told
that their child would develop a genetic disease early on in its life? Can laws be made that can stop people
terminating their baby
because its parents do not want the responsibility
of looking after
a terminally ill child?
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INSURING
YOUR LIFE |
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Insurance
companies have always tried to make sure that those people who will need
treatment pay more than those who will remain healthy. Many smokers pay
more insurance as a result. Will the insurance for the people who will
develop serious genetic diseases and those that will get cancer become
so expensive that they
can no longer afford
it?
Or will the insurance companies simply refuse to insure such
people?
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INSURING
YOUR JOB |
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Employers
want workers who can work hard for long periods, and
stay healthy. What
if your DNA shows that you are about to become sick for a long time? You
might need a lot of time
off work if you develop the disease. Will your
boss decide that it is better
to fire you now rather than wait for you
to become ill?
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TRAVELLING
ABROAD |
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Today
USA, seen by many as the guardian of democracy, restricts the
immigration of people with HIV and AIDS. Is it a big step for a country
to prevent immigration of someone who has genes that cause a disease and
which can be
passed on
to their children? They may argue that their country cannot afford
to care for
the person and their children when they become ill. You may even
be
prevented from taking
holidays in other countries if you carry ‘bad’ genes.
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IMPROVING
YOUR BODY
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One
of the most exciting parts of the work on the human genome is the
promise of finding cures for diseases like diabetes and Alzheimer’s.
It is the dream of many scientists and doctors to discover the treatment
to cure these diseases. But the technique that cures diabetes could be
used to improve someone's looks. For example someone may like to have a
permanent tan,
or bigger muscles. However, most commentators agree that such treatments
will be expensive. They say that if someone chooses to spend their money
this way, then we cannot stop them. It is no different to cosmetic
surgery today.
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Source:
New English Digest |
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GLOSSARY |
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major:
of greater importance
(sumamente importante)
mankind: humanity (humanidad)
breakthrough: important discovery (descubrimiento)
passes on: transfers (transfiere, trasmite)
diseases: illnesses (enfermedades)
is made
up of:
consists in
(consiste en, está integrado por)
to solve: to resolve, to figure out (para resolver)
goal: objective, end (meta, objetivo)
to achieve: to accomplish (lograr, alcanzar)
at the start of: at the beginning of (al inicio de)
earned:
obtained
(alcanzaba, obtenía)
in fact: in reality, the truth is (en
realidad)
alarmed: alerted (alarmado)
all humankind: all mankind, all
of the inhabitants of the earth (toda la humanidad)
tied up: involved, engaged (involucrado)
secrecy agreements: private statements (acuerdos
privados)
will raise: will bring up (planteará)
to face: to deal with (enfrentar, asumir) |
break up: terminate, separate (romperse, destruirse)
you are 25% more likely to...: your probability of...
is over 25% (tienes una probabilidad superior al 25% de...)
parents were told: someone informed parents (a los
padres se les informara)
terminating their baby: trying to expel their baby
(de abortar su bebé)
of looking after: of taking care of (de cuidar)
can no longer afford
it:
do not have the financial means
for it (ya
no puedan afrontar los gastos)
stay healthy: keep in good health (mantenerse
sanos)
off work: with a long sick leave (de licencia por
enfrmedad)
to fire: to dismiss, to sack (despedir)
passed on: transferred (transferidos)
to care for: to provide treatment for (hacerse cargo
de)
prevented from taking: not able to take (imposibilitado
de tomar)
permanent tan: a permanent browning or suntan of the
skin (bronceado permanente) |
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MAS "SOCIEDAD"
FORO
INICIO |
