The Human Genome Project Essay -- Science Genetics Essays

The Human Genome sufferOn the brink of the 21st century, communicables is paving the way into a brave, immature world where the disc overies being made will bestow upon us tremendous military units and possibilities that are restricted only by our imaginations. Many things enormous considered science fiction are well on their way to becoming reality. Advancements made by the Human Genome Project give us the mogul to alter our own destinies along with those of our descendents. However, along with the benefits of increased control over our lives come the uncertainties Will humankind choose to draw boundaries in regards to genetic choices? Where will those boundaries be? How will this affect our future? Could our deepened knowledge of the power of genetics threaten the biodiversity essential to evolution? Would we, in essence, be playacting God? One thing is certain- life, as we know it, will neer be the same (Rayl, 112).Before one can speculate intellectually about the benefit s and uncertainties of genetic study, it is important to understand how we, as humankind, have reached this jailbreak point of science. The HGP began in 1990 as a 15-year project coordinated by the U.S. Department of Energy and the National Institutes of Health. It is expected to be complete by 2003, two years ahead of schedule, due to rapid technological advances. The boilersuit goals of this project are to catalog the estimated 80,000- 100,000 genes in the human DNA and to control the sequences of the 3 billion chemical bases that make up the human DNA. This new information will accordingly be stored in databases, as geneticists then develop tools for its analysis. Finally, the HGP is to address the ethical, legal, and companionable issues that may arise from the genetic enquiry (... ...ty, must agree upon a set of rules and standards that will govern the ethical, legal, and social issues surrounding the final outcome of the project. Clearly, we must do it quickly.References1 - Rayl, A.J.S., et al. geneticals in the New Millennium. MINNESOTA MONTHLY. Aug., 1999112- 124.2- Human Genome Project Information. Obtained 20 Oct., 1999 http//www.ornl.gov/hgmis.3- The Future is Now. term magazine international. 8 Feb., 1999VOL. 153 NO. 5. Obtained 20 Oct., 1999 http//www.pathfinder.com/time/magazine/articles/0,3266,20825,00.html.4- Associated Press. unregulated gene testing can be faulty. Star Tribune. 21 Sept., 1999.5- Holtzman, Neil and Shapiro, David, et al. Genetic Testing and Public Policy. British Medical Journal. 14 March, 1998 316(7134). Obtained 17 Nov., 1999 http//www.bmj.com/cgi/ confine/full/316/7134/852.