As more people become aware of what medical procedures are taking place in the world, it is only natural that there will always be controversy. Lives are full of choices, and no matter what you choose there are always people who do not think that your choice was the right one to make. As more medical procedures become available there will always be the question as to whether or not it is ethical.
What is genetic screening? Genetic screenings are defined as “systematic searches for persons with a specific genotype” or as “tests to identify persons who have an inherited predisposition to a certain phenotype or who are at risk of producing offspring with inherited diseases or disorders”. As more and more people, begin to take an interest in the field of human genetics it is obvious that new discoveries will be made, whether it is good news or bad. With the amount of research that has been going into research regarding phenotypes and genotypes, there is no question as to whether or not there will be major improvements to our lives in the near future. With new technological advances, there is no doubt, as to whether or not we are pushing some kinds of limits. This is where the ethical controversy begins.
How does genetic screening work? It is a test that works by identifying an individual that has a genetic disorder. It directly examines the DNA (deoxyribonucleic acid) molecule alone. In a gene tests a sample of a patient’s DNA is tested for mutated sequences. The sample that they test can be taken from any tissue in the human body, including blood. In other types of gene tests researchers begin by designing short pieces of DNA that are referred to as probes, whose sequences are complementary to the mutated sequences. These probes will try to find their complement amongst the three billion base pairs of an individual’s genome. If the mutated sequence is at hand in the patience genome, the probe will bind to it and pin the mutation. Another type of DNA testing...