DR. SITI PAULIENA MOHD

BOHARI

Ethics is about what we ought and ought not to do.

It is also about setting priorities to human behaviour.

Ethics is not always about what is absolutely right or

wrong, acceptable or unacceptable, ideal or less than

ideal.

It is also about what is the best decision in particular

circumstances, what is the lesser of two evils, what is the

balance between doing good and causing harm.

Ethics is therefore about working out the principles on

which we make these sorts of decisions.

It is important to understand the relationship between law and ethics.

The law also intervenes where there is a conflict between individuals about the best interests of other people.

e.g. the courts often have to decide which parent should have the custody of children when a couple divorce. Quite properly, the courts are asked to analyze the ethical principles in each case, set out what the law says and decide what is best interest of the child.

The study of the ethical and moral

implications of new biological discoveries

and biomedical advances, as in the fields of

genetic engineering and drug research.

the study of typically

controversial ethics brought about by

advances in biology and medicine

The field of bioethics has addressed a broad

swathe of human inquiry, ranging from

debates over the boundaries of life

(e.g. abortion,euthanasia), surrogacy, the

allocation of scarce health care resources

(e.g. organ donation, health care rationing)

to the right to refuse medical care for

religious or cultural reasons

The scope of bioethics can expand with

biotechnology, including cloning, gene

therapy, life extension, human genetic

engineering, astroethics and life in

space,[5] and manipulation of basic biology

through altered DNA, XNA and proteins

MEDICAL ETHICS

BIOTECHNOLOGY ETHICAL ISSUES

ENVIRONMENTAL ETHICS

BIOETHICS

Evolution To Bioethics

There has been an evolution of the terminology over the years, from genetic engineering to genetic manipulation to genetic modification, in attempts to lessen any negative connotations. It has been suggested that the scientists

should have stuck with recombinant DNA technology, which is the general

technical term for this range of techniques.

The Malaysian Bioethics Council was launched on 22

May 2012 by the Minister of Science, Technology and

Innovation YB Datuk Seri Panglima Dr. Maximus

Johnity Ongkili

The Council is made up of representatives from

noted academic experts, and representatives from

government and non-government offices and aims

to provide advice, as well as resolve and manage

bioethical issues in the country.

The Bioethics Council will be focusing on the impact of science and technology on the

environment, society, public health, culture, laws

and religion. : Dr. Ongkili

MALAYSIAN BIOETHICS

Medical bioethics is under the purview of the

Malaysian Medical Council

Islamic matters are under the National Fatwa

Council.

The Council's inaugural chairman is Prof. Datuk Dr.

Mahani Clyde from Universiti Kebangsaan Malaysia.

During 25 years after the Second World War (1939-1945), several factors came together to give rise to the birth of the discipline of bioethics.

A frog has been cloned in Cambridge in the early 1950s.

In 1953, Watson and Crick made their ground-breaking discovery of the structure of DNA.

The structure of DNA was being thought in the senior years of secondary school but much was still based on classical genetics. It was not until the early 1970s that modern molecular biology really took off, opening our later ability to manipulate genes, study them in great detail, to diagnose and select against genetic disease in the early embryo.

Massive advances were also taking place in many other branches of biomedicine:

Human organs were being transplanted

Life could be prolonged by drugs and surgery

The functions of organs such as the kidneys and the lungs could be taken over by machines.

Studies of mammalian fertilization led to the creation of test-tube babies

Genetic tests could be applied to embryos created in vitro.

Mammals were eventually cloned.

So enormous the possibilities raised by these advances that there was increasingly concern in society that the traditional framework of ethical thinking could not bear their weight.

It was more difficult to weight the balance between benefit and harm.

Traditional ethical principles conflicted at times.

As 20th century moved on, the public demanded to have more say in how biomedical discoveries were used. So, bioethics developed as a discipline.

In bioethics, philosophers, lawyers, theologians, sociologists and lay people join with biomedical scientists in assessing what is the appropriate use of new developments and technologies. In many areas, there are now formally constituted groups, which have major input into public policy and the regulation of science.

There are some serious issues related to genetic

modification of animals using animal genetic

engineering techniques

One is not sure of the consequences of these

genetic modifications and the further interaction

with the environment.

Proper clinical trials are also necessary before one

can use it for commercial purposes.

Some religious groups have expressed their

concern about the transfer of genes from

animals whose flesh is forbidden for use as

food into the animals that they normally eat

Transfer of animal genes into food plants

that may be objectionable to the

vegetarians.

a) What will be the consequences, if a modified animal will breed with other domestic or wild animals thereby transferring the introduced genes to these populations? b) What are the health risks to human on consumption of genetically modified animals and their products? c) With the production of disease resistant animals, what will be the effect on ecology? d) There is also wide spread concern about the risks of human recipients getting infected with animal viral diseases after a xenotransplantation., which might infect the population at large. e) There are also concerns about the risk that drug resistance gene markers used in genetic engineering procedures might inadvertently be transferred and expressed.

Bioethics in biotechnology includes the general subject of what should and should not be done in using recombinant techniques in the medical practice or in preparing pharmaceutical, food and agricultural products.

In view of the many ethical issues raised due to the extensive development of genetic science a more refined field of bioethics, namely genethics (gene+ethics) has been proposed (Majeed, 2000).

Briefly, genethics must include personal conduct issues as well as the public controversy over medical, pharmaceutical, food and agricultural biotechnology involving genetics.

A guideline on genethics should be formulated in order to improve scientists, students, and citizens ability to make judgments and articulate their own beliefs about what is right and what is wrong with respect to these new challenging technologies. At the same time, this should enable them to understand and appreciate the beliefs and concern others.

Regulations

Apply to higher animals ( sufficient brain brain capacity

and organization-feel pain and distress)

Sentient anytime after halfway through embryonic

development and restrictions will apply to method by

which the animal is killed, operated upon if it is remain

to be living

Restriction: how the animal is housed, maintained

Not apply to lower vertebrates-fish, or invertebrates

Legislation vary from country to country

Different from animal and more complex

Collected under clinical conditions by an

experienced medical practitioner

Issue: where the tissue taken? the use?

Local control-local hospital ethics committee

The patients and/or relatives informed consent is required before taking tissue for research purposes, over and above any clinical requirement.

A suitable form (see Table 6.8) should be drafted in a style readily understood by the patient or donor, requesting permission and drawing attention to the use that might be made of the tissue.

Permission may be required from a relative if the donor is too unwell to be considered capable of a reasoned judgment.

A short summary of your project should be prepared,in lay terms, explaining what you are doing, why, and what the possible outcome will be, particularly if it is seen to be of medical benefit.

Confidentiality of the origin of the tissue must be ensured.

Ownership of cell lines and their derivatives must be established.

Authority may be needed for subsequent genetic modification of the cell lines.

Patent rights from any commercial collaboration will need to be established.

The donor will need to determine whether any

genetic information derived from the tissue should

be fed back to the patient directly or via an

attending clinician.

The donor will also be required to consent to

screening of the tissue for adventitious pathogens

and to say whether he or she wishes to be made

aware of the outcome of the tests.