Gene Therapy and its Ethical Issues
What if there was a way to eliminate genetic disorders? There would be more children who can lead long and healthy lives. Less people would suffer from uncontrollable chromosomal errors. One method that is being tested to cure genetic disorders is gene therapy. During gene therapy, the mutated gene that prevents the cell from carrying out its normal functions is removed and replaced with a working gene that allows the cell to carry out functions it could not before (Stone 2010). The patient will not suffer from the genetic disorder that resulted from the mutated gene anymore. There is still research on inserting genes into targeted cells because it is challenging. Gene therapy is used in limited amounts because more information is needed before it becomes a normalized and practical procedure. Although there is potential for gene therapy to revolutionize treatment for genetic disorders, there is controversy surrounding the ethical issues of changing someone’s DNA. In addition, changing one gene can inadvertently change other parts of DNA and lead to unforeseen health risks that may result in death.
Figure 1- Systems for Gene Delivery.
Source: Viral and nonviral delivery systems for gene delivery by Nouri Nayerossadat from Advanced Biomedical Research (2012)
There is research on gene therapy to make a practical procedure for inserting a gene into a cell so that it becomes part of the cell’s DNA. It is the “most difficult” part of gene therapy (Zhang 2012). The new gene has to cross the cell membrane and enter the nucleus (Nayerossadat 2012). There are many techniques being studied to insert the fixed DNA into a cell. One popular technique for gene therapy, called in vivo delivery, is using vectors to transfer a gene into a cell (Nayerossadat 2012). Some vectors are viral. Viruses are ideal for transferring genes because they are easy to manipulate so that they carry the desired genes and they are capable of inserting genes into many types of cells (Stone 2010). They are made “safe” during manipulation, but it is difficult to rid a virus of all of its damaging qualities while maintaining functions needed for gene transfer (Stone 2010). In addition, patients may have an inflammatory response to viral vectors (Stone 2010). Some prefer using nonviral vectors because they are more available and are cost-effective (Nayerossadat 2012). As shown in Figure 1, nonviral vectors transfer genes by physical or chemical methods. A physical method is injecting naked DNA, or DNA without proteins called histones, into target tissue and creating an electric field to increase cell permeability, called electroporation, so that the DNA will successfully enter the cell (Niidome 2002). This method is not efficient and used for limited purposes such as vaccinations (Nayerossadat 2012). Chemical methods involve chemical carries like lipids and cationic polymers, each also with advantages and disadvantages (Niidome 2002). These techniques need to be modified so that they can be safely used as clinical treatments in all types of cells and tissues.
Gene therapy has garnered controversy for being an unethical. There are two types of gene therapies: somatic and germline. DNA will change in both types, but only changes in germline DNA will be passed on to the next generation. Germline gene therapy is ethically not allowed anywhere (Nayerossadat 2012). There are too many potential consequences for changing the DNA of germ cells. Generations can be affected by a bad experiment. Other ethical concerns include changing a gene for nontherapeutic reasons, such as beauty enhancements, “superhuman characteristics” like wings, and longer life expectancy (Robillard 2013). Genetic diversity, conformity to social standards of beauty, and the importance of one’s identity and authenticity as a human if one is genetically enhanced are all topics that must be taken seriously into consideration before gene therapy becomes a clinical treatment. Gene therapy can allow many people born with genetic disorders to live normally and help their families become happy. However, it can be exploited and cause unintentional harm to human DNA and future generations.
Works Cited
Nayerossadat N, Maedeh T, Palizban AA. Viral and nonviral delivery systems for gene delivery. Advanced Biomedical Research 2012;1(27):n/a
Niidome T, Huang L. Gene Therapy Progress and Prospects: Nonviral vectors. Gene Therapy 2002;9:1647-1652
Robillard JM, Whiteley L, Johnson TW, Lim J, Wasserman WW, Illes J. Utilizing Social Media to Study Information-Seeking and Ethical Issues in Gene Therapy. Journal of Medical Internet Research 2013;15(3):n/a
Stone D. Novel viral vector systems for gene therapy. Viruses 2010;2:1002-1007
Zhang Y, Satterlee A, Huang Leaf. In Vivo Gene Delivery by Nonviral Vectors: Overcoming Hurdles? Molecular Therapy 2012; 20(7); 1298-1304
