Genetics

             Nearly half a century ago, two scientists discovered, "the secret of life." What Watson and Crick found in their Cambridge laboratory might not have been the secret of life, but it has allowed for many changes in most people's everyday life. Their finding is the structure of deoxyribonucleic acid, or better known as DNA. In recent times, this double helix has caused great controversy. The successful cloning of sheep in early 1997 is what aroused the populace to debate. Many scientists are attempting to dictate the moral and ethical uses of DNA. Several countries have enacted laws prohibiting research in genetics. The restrictions that currently exist should not be modified or annexed.
             A major development in genetic research is that of genetic engineering, or gene therapy. Gene therapy inserts genetic material into foreign cells, revolutionizing the field of genetics. In the early nineteenth century, Canadian physiologists isolated the hormone known as insulin. A lack of insulin in the body causes diabetes, a fatal disease. About forty years later, scientists began looking for ways to replace insulin in the body. Scientists often used pig insulin, but the human body would often reject the foreign hormone. In the 1970's, and after experimenting heavily with mixing pig genes and human genes, scientists discovered a way to inject human insulin DNA into pig cells. This eventually led to a method that allowed human insulin to be grown in a laboratory using simple bacteria. Now millions of people take daily dosages of insulin manufactured from methods developed by genetic research, without which the patients die. (Lebovitz, par. 6)
             Aside from the case of diabetes, there are many other implementations of genetic engineering that strongly affect people's lives. Over 30,000 people in the United States have been diagnosed with the disease called Cystic fibrosis. The disease cripples the ability to b...

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