Change In Genetics Essay, Research Paper

Note: Done for a grade 9 social-studies project. Not very much time and research was spent on this topic.

Klyment Tan, September 27, 1997

Change in Genetics

Genetics and biotechnology are very old fields of science. During the time of the Egyptians, people have used primitive genetics to produce better crops and livestock. The similar species were crossbreed to produce new species with more desirable traits. The first person to really study genetics was Gregor Mendel, an Austrian monk. He began his research 1900. Other geneticist independently discovered the same knowledge as Mendel, but it was ignored. His study was on pea plants and on how hereditarity affected the offspring of the original peas. He discovered that the traits of the parent plants were inherent in pairs. His studies have shown that each of the parents contributed to the overall characteristics of the new plant but only one gene dominant in each of the characteristics of the new plant. Gregor Mendel also discovered that these strands of characteristics came in pairs, which were later given the name genes.

“Soon after Mendel’s work was rediscovered, scientists realized that the patterns of inheritance he had described paralleled the action of chromo-somes in dividing cells, and they proposed that the Mendelian units of in-heritance, the genes, are carried by the chromosomes. This led to intensive studies of cell division.”

The true definition of genetics, however, is the study of how, why, and possibly how to control behavioral traits that are transmitted from the parents to the offspring. This field of study has gone far in the 20th century. In this field of study, humans have discovered that genetics is the basis of all life and that genes determine everything about any living thing. We have learned that genes can be directly altered to produce new organisms without cross breeding. This altering is called gene splicing. Although the effects of genes are directly altered, it is still another form of cross breeding.

“Genes consist of the chemical deoxyribonucleic acid (DNA). In re-combinant DNA, the DNA of one organism is joined to the DNA of a sec-ond organism to produce a recombinant (or “recombined” DNA. When this recombinant DNA is introduced into another organism, it permanently changes the genetic makeup of that organism and all its descendants.

“Specific genes and their DNA direct an organism’s characteristics through the formation of specific proteins such as enzymes and hormones. Proteins perform vital functions-for example, enzymes initiate many of the chemical reactions that take place within an organism, and hormones regu-late various processes such as growth, metabolism, and reproduction. Re-combinant DNA technology essentially alters the characteristics of an or-ganism by changing its protein makeup.”

This has only been consistently achieved in single-celled organisms for the past few years. Recently, a very controversial issue has risen. That issue is cloning. Cloning gives us the ability to produce mammals with the exact characteristics the are desired, as shown with “Dolly”, the cloned sheep. The sheep was produced without proper fertilization of the egg from the mother and was incubated into a full sized animal with the exact genetic structure of the parent. Using recently acquired knowledge, humans have manipulated an unfertilized egg to make it act as if it were fertilized.

Genetics has also been used in forensics. With genetics, we can tell, who died, how a person died, and if he or she was murdered, by whom. We can also find an orphan’s biological parents with just a tiny quantity of blood or other bodily tissue.

This is has all been achieved, even with our current level of knowl-edge.

In the future, perhaps one hundred years from now, a super species of humans and a genetic and evolutionarily and genetically perfect order of plant and animals will live on earth. The humans would be completely dis-ease resistant and so will the plants and animals, completely wiping out all microorganisms.

With this genetic ability, anything can control the birth, behavior, and death of any organisms. By use of a genetic creating machine, a substance can be created that, when consumed by a being, will alter its entire genetic makeup, making it react completely differently than it was a few picosec-onds ago. With this potential, the world will be in perfect balance. With this potential also comes complete control. There will be no mutation, no evolu-tionary progression. The holder of the knowledge and ability will manually control everything. There will be extinction only of the species that have not been genetically altered for they will fall prey to the stronger species.

Complete genetic control presents an awesome liability. One minute fault in a genetic alteration could lead the complete annihilation of a whole family. And if the genetic code of an organism was changed so that it could transfer its genetic code from one being to another telepathically or by touch and if the that organism was evolutionarily defective, the entire species would be wiped out, or worse, all life would cease to exist. It is all possible, with the study of genetics, genetic engineering, and biotechnology.

Bibliography

Genetics ?1993-1996 Microsoft? Encarta? 97 Encyclopedia. The Micro-soft Corporation

Genetic Engineering ?1993-1996 Microsoft? Encarta? 97 Encyclopedia. The Microsoft Corporation

Biotechnology ?1993-1996 Microsoft? Encarta? 97 Encyclopedia. The Microsoft Corporation

Genetics ?1994-1997 Compton’s? Interactive Encyclopedia? 1997 Edi-tion. Compton’s New Media

Genetic Engineering ?1994-1997 Compton’s? Interactive Encyclopedia? 1997 Edition. Compton’s New Media

Bunting, Judith (1994) Genetics. London: Boxtree Ltd.