David Spitzenberger and Finn Meier

Ms. Townley

Composition

3 December 2018

The Possibilities of Altering DNA

What if I told you that I can guarantee your baby will be an Olympic athlete and never in

his life be diagnosed with any disease that could potentially kill him? Pretty crazy to think about,

but it’s all possible with altering DNA. Altering DNA is a big topic in today’s day and age.

There are many contradictions but always a supporting angle that comes with them. Changing a

human’s DNA can make them immune to all diseases that could harm them later in life. Diseases

such as heart disease, which causes 610,000 deaths per year in the United States alone (Centers

for Disease Control and Prevention). Also an even bigger one is cancer, which kills about 1,620

people per day (Verywell Health). Think of a world without just these two diseases, altering

DNA could potentially eliminate every disease that a human could be diagnosed with.

Though this may seem like some sort of science fiction, the reality of regular genetic

alteration may be closer than we expect. In 2017, the first genetically modified human embryo in

the United States was carried out by a team of researchers in Portland, Oregon (MIT Technology

Review). Shoukhrat Mitalipov of Oregon Health and Science University and his team have

broken ground with the number of embryos successfully experienced upon by showing that it is

possible to efficiently and safely correct defective genes that cause diseases. These scientists

have proved that they can successfully cure inherent disease, one passed down from a mother or

father, and end the disease for the next generation of that family completely. Scientists call this
“germline engineering” because a genetically modified human would pass down the changes

made by scientists to the rest of his future lineage. But if we can go in and alter the DNA of a

child in order to cure him of some inherent disease, then who's to say we can’t and won’t alter

the DNA of a child to not only cure a disadvantage, but to create an advantage. For example, say

parents of a child are paying scientists to treat inherent baldness in the child’s genetics, at this

point, why not also give the child long blonde hair. With genetic alteration technology of this

much power and potential, confusion begins to grow in what is moral and immoral about this

technology.

The idea of “designer babies”, genetically modified children with all kids of advantages

such as high attractiveness, intellect, strength, etc., is obviously frowned upon by groups such as

religious organizations, civil society groups, and biotech companies, but where do we draw the

line between what’s moral and immoral? Many would argue that treating an inherent disease is a

moral and just act, but what justifies treating a disease over correcting an extremely low intellect.

As this technology advances and the possibilities grow, the lines of what should and should not

be allowed with this grow messier and messier.

These possibilities are extremely appealing but there are many contradictions and

valid arguments against this. Altering DNA can cause an unknown amount of side effects.

Thinking about the unimaginable is impossible, so it begs the question, is it worth it? If we don’t

know what it could potentially do to our bodies then it will be extremely hard to get this kind of

surgery approved. One extremely scary possibility from altering DNA is biological warfare.

After extracting these dangerous disease’s one could potentially mass produce it and use it

against enemies.
 Obviously, there is a side where this could turn very bad. But on the contrary it could

make ones life and health almost perfect. One thing we should do is more research because more

research can’t hurt. With more research we may find a way to perfect this operation, or we could

find out that if one were to perform this operation it would fail miserably and ruin someone's life.

I think that this operation should be looked further into and eventually be done on every

single baby that is born. The possibilities with altering DNA are endless. With the right minds

working at this it can be perfected and will overall make us live longer, make life better, and get

rid of any despair or mourning from losing another loved one to cancer or one of the other

countless diseases. Imagining the possibilities is insane, but making it a reality will change life

forever.

Bibliography:

Regalado, Antonio. “We Uncovered the Plan to Engineer the Human Species.” MIT

Technology Review, MIT Technology Review, 7 Apr. 2016,

www.technologyreview.com/s/535661/engineering-the-perfect-baby/​.

Fayed, Lisa. “How Many People Die of Cancer Die Each Day?” Verywell Health,

Verywellhealth, 5 Feb. 2018,

www.verywellhealth.com/how-many-people-die-of-cancer-each-day-513641​.
 “Heart Disease Facts & Statistics.” Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, Centers

for Disease Control and Prevention, 28 Nov. 2017, ​www.cdc.gov/heartdisease/facts.htm​.