DESIGNER BABIES By Soraya and Hayley

WHAT ARE DESIGNER BABIES?

Designer Babies are genetically engineered to change their features such as; their height, gender, hair and eye colour, other cosmetic traits, athleticism and intelligence. A scientist does this by changing the embryo’s DNA to suit that of the parents request.

It’s also known as Preimplantation genetic diagnosis.

HISTORY

Due to the unnatural altering of the genes in the human body, some immune disorders have resulted.

Scientists have been working on a cure for a genetic immune disorder that has been passed down through generations.

In 2000, scientists removed genes from many immune deficient patients, but stopped their trials soon after as 2/10 patients developed Leukaemia due to the gene altering. Afterwards this then rose to 7/10 in 2007 after the trials.

Scientists can also alter chromosomes on unborn females to allow them to have children if it is previously known that they are going to be infertile.

THE PROCESS

Scientists can alter Somatic cells and Germline cells.

Somatic cell therapy alters specific organs and tissues in a person. This is to correct a mutation or provide a new function for those cells. Somatic cell therapy has the possibility to treat genetic disorders, but these changes cannot be passed to offspring.

Germline cell therapy alters the genome (your genetics). This affects every cell in the body and can be passed on to offspring. It can treat and cure genetic disorders and erase them from future generations. It has not been trialled on humans yet, only animals and plants.

WHAT DOES THIS ALTER?

Gender: at the moment, changing gender is possible and is open for couples who have the risk of passing on a disorder that only effects one gender. This is not an option for parents who only want to do it as a preference.

Intelligence and health: This can be engineered by changing the genetic code by inserting sequences that make the baby have potential to have high intelligence. This has not been achieved yet and is still being perfected.

Eye colour and skin colour: this process is only available in the US because it is banned in all other countries.

COMPLICATIONS

When altering germ cells, if a mistake is made it will be with us forever because the problem will be passed on through generations, however, there is small evidence that this can remove a life threatening genetic disease that can effect millions.

Parents will end up being competitive with characteristics of their children.

People will allow families to clone them for cash; this would be immoral, there would be no variety, we wouldn’t be individuals, there would always be someone bigger and better (continual upgrades) for example: The i-Phone.

There will be hardly any people to do simple jobs such as working in factories because everyone will be intelligent.

We will only value our offspring, not ourselves, as people would only do this for shallow and selfish reasons.

If the disease that are currently about are gotten rid of, there is a possibility that new diseases would be created by accident.

Eugenics and Nazis will want ‘racial purity.’

We may get to the point of immortality

The rich who can afford these changes will be separated from the poor people who cannot, because the altered humans will not want to dilute the genes.

This will result in the genetically enhanced race of pure humans ruling the world over the naturally conceived human race.

Many cultures prefer male to female, so if everyone had the choice, then there’d be a serious gender imbalance. In the next generation.

There would be a lot of competition and rivalry.

The population would be affected drastically because people would live so long due to such great health and society would break down due to the competitive game of the latest and greatest.

SO IS THIS RIGHT OR WRONG?

We believe that the process of Designer Babies is immoral if done in a shallow way, but it could be acceptable, if followed by strict guidelines, and done in a way to benefit their health or to correct a genetic disease.

The idea of ‘no one is perfect’ would go out the window because in a sense, these children that have been created would be ‘perfect.’

Your children would end up being like a product that you buy, they would be there only as a material thing that gives you a sense of pride and self esteem because you feel as though this ‘perfect’ little boy or girl is a creation of your own, when in reality, the child you have wasn’t gained out of luck, it was gained out of money and a very intelligent scientist.

THANK YOU FOR WATCHING