23
Designer Babies The Future of Reproductive Technology Technology. Eugenics. Design Discussi ons Worth Sharing

Designer Babies The Future of Reproductive Technology

  • Upload
    corine

  • View
    45

  • Download
    0

Embed Size (px)

DESCRIPTION

Discussions Worth Sharing. Technology. Eugenics. Design. Designer Babies The Future of Reproductive Technology. Outline. Discussions worth Sharing. Background Who is it for Canadian statistics and regulations Discussions Reflections Future directions Summary. Objective. - PowerPoint PPT Presentation

Citation preview

Page 1: Designer Babies The Future of Reproductive Technology

Designer BabiesThe Future of Reproductive Technology

Technology. Eugenics. Design

Discussions Worth Sharing

Page 2: Designer Babies The Future of Reproductive Technology

Outline

• Background• Who is it for• Canadian statistics and regulations• Discussions• Reflections• Future directions• Summary

Discussions worth Sharing

Page 3: Designer Babies The Future of Reproductive Technology

Objective

• General understanding of preimplantation genetic diagnosis (PGD) technology

• Gain a wider perspective on cultural, religious and social implications

• Think actively, discuss openly, participate!

Discussions worth Sharing

Page 4: Designer Babies The Future of Reproductive Technology

Background

Designer Baby –

Discussions worth Sharing

“a baby whose genetic make-up has been selected in order to eradicate a particular defect or to ensure that a particular gene is present”

Page 5: Designer Babies The Future of Reproductive Technology

Background

Preimplantation Genetic Diagnosis (PGD)• Assisted human reproductive technology• Screening of embryos for genetic abnormalities prior to

transferring to the uterus• In vitro fertilization consists of:

1) Ovarian stimulation2) Egg retrieval3) Egg fertilization4) Embryo development 5) Embryo transfer

Discussions worth Sharing

Page 6: Designer Babies The Future of Reproductive Technology

Who?

• Individuals or couples who are at risk to pass on a condition that is the result of a variant in a single gene

• Individuals or couples with a chromosome condition, or who have had a previous child with a chromosome condition

• Women who are at an increased risk to have a child with a chromosome condition due to their age

Discussions worth Sharing

Page 7: Designer Babies The Future of Reproductive Technology

Canadian Statistics - 2010

• 22 769 patients underwent in vitro fertilization over the past 5 years

• 61% of fertility clinics responded (17 out of 28 clinics)– 6 performed embryo biopsy on site– 7 referred to other units in Canada– 3 referred to units in U.S.

• Majority do not offer PGD due to:– Lack of resource/staff/money/expertise– No market demand– Not convinced it would yield accurate diagnosis

Discussions worth Sharing

Page 8: Designer Babies The Future of Reproductive Technology

Regulations• Assisted Human Reproduction Act (2004)• Prohibited Activities– Create a human clone– Create an in vitro embryo for any purpose other than

creating a human being– Maintain an embryo outside the body after 14 days

of fertilization– Alter the genome of a cell of a human or in vitro

embryo– Gender selection for non-medical reasons

Discussions worth Sharing

Page 9: Designer Babies The Future of Reproductive Technology

DiscussionsControversies

Page 10: Designer Babies The Future of Reproductive Technology

Discussions worth Sharing

Page 11: Designer Babies The Future of Reproductive Technology

Discussions

• Selecting for a disability

Discussions worth Sharing

“Being deaf is not about being disabled, or medically incomplete - it's about being part of a linguistic minority. We're proud, not of the medical aspect of deafness, but of the language we use and the community we live in.”

Page 12: Designer Babies The Future of Reproductive Technology

Discussions worth Sharing

Page 13: Designer Babies The Future of Reproductive Technology

Discussions

• First born child: 76% have no gender preference

• More than one child: 30% want equal number of girls and boys, and 58% have no preference

• Using technology: 92% against it

Discussions worth Sharing

• Surveyed among pregnancy women: 58% had no gender preference

• Couples undergoing fertility treatment: 40% would like to select the sex of their baby

234 surveyed:• 39% have no

preference• 39% prefer a girl• 22% prefer a boy

Page 14: Designer Babies The Future of Reproductive Technology
Page 15: Designer Babies The Future of Reproductive Technology

Discussions

• Adam Nash• One of 15 embryos• Saved his sister

suffering from Fanconi’s anaemia

• Great achievement or unethical?

Discussions worth Sharing

Page 16: Designer Babies The Future of Reproductive Technology

Reflection

Religious, Cultural, Societal Impacts

Discussions worth Sharing

Page 17: Designer Babies The Future of Reproductive Technology

Religious Impacts

• Dignitas Personae• “Preimplanation diagnosis…constitutes an act

of abortion... By treating the human embryo as mere ‘laboratory material’, the concept itself of human dignity is also subjected to alteration and discrimination…Such discrimination is immoral and must therefore be considered legally unacceptable…”

Discussions worth Sharing

Page 18: Designer Babies The Future of Reproductive Technology

Cultural Impacts

• India– Prefer boys

Discussions worth Sharing

• China– Country side Prefer boys

Page 19: Designer Babies The Future of Reproductive Technology

Social Impacts

• Socioeconomic disparity• Discrimination– Social activists– Disability activists

• Eugenics – “the science of improving a population by controlled breeding to increase the occurrence of desirable heritable characteristics”

Discussions worth Sharing

Page 20: Designer Babies The Future of Reproductive Technology

Future Directions

• More research, increased market demand, increased access to screening– More on-site PGD

• More will choose PGD over other methods• When should it be refused?• What to regulate? • Should government provide funding?

Discussions worth Sharing

Page 21: Designer Babies The Future of Reproductive Technology

Summary

• Science and technology is always evolving• No right or wrong views• Religious, cultural, societal influences• Keep an open mind

Discussions worth Sharing

“The important thing in science is not so much to obtain new facts as to discover new ways of

thinking about them.”- Sir William Lawrence Bragg

More information at: http://futurebabies.weebly.com

Page 22: Designer Babies The Future of Reproductive Technology

References1. Collins M. Designing Rules for Designer Babies. Sci Am. 2009;300(5):29.2. Crockin S. Adam Nash: legally speaking, a happy ending or slippery slope? Reprod Biomed Online. 2001;2(1):6-7.3. Dahl E. Procreative liberty: the case for preconception sex selection. Reprod Biomed Online. 2003;7(4):380-4.4. Edwards RG. Ethics of PGD: thoughts on the consequences of typing HLA in embryos. Reprod Biomed

Online. 2004;9(2):222-4.5. Klitzman R et. al. Anticipating issues related to increasing preimplantation genetic diagnosis use: a research agenda.

Reprod Biomed Online. 2008;17 Suppl 1:33-42.6. McMahon CA. Community concerns about sex selection: research as a way forward – response to Edgar Dahl’s ‘The

presumption in favour of liberty’. Reprod Biomed Online. 2004;8(3):272-4.7. Murphy TF. Choosing disabilities and enhancements in children: a choice too far? Reprod Biomed Online. 2009;18 Suppl

1:43-9.8. Speechley KN, Nisker J. Preimplantation Genetic Diagnosis in Canada: A Survey of Canadian IVF Units. J Obstet Gynaecol

Can. 2010;32(4):341-7.9. Steinbock B. Designer babies: choosing our children’s genes. Lancet. 2008;372(9646):1294-5.10. Assisted Human Reproduction Canada. Legislation, Regulations and Guidelines. 12 Sept 2011. Available at

http://www.ahrc-pac.gc.ca/v2/index-eng.php. Accessed March 8, 2013.11. Carlson E. Image Archive on the American Eugenics Movement. Available at

http://www.eugenicsarchive.org/html/eugenics/essay2text.html. Accessed March 8, 2013.12. Kirkey S. Center For Genetics And Society. Embryo testing stokes concern over designer babies. 19 Sept 2011. Available

at http://www.geneticsandsociety.org/index.php. Accessed March 8, 2013.13. Lewis D. Infertility Awareness Association of Canada. Pre-Implantation Genetic Diagnosis Now Available to all

Canadians! 2006. Available at http://www.iaac.ca/content/pre-implantation-genetic-diagnosis-now-available-all-canadians. Accessed March 8, 2013.

14. The Congregation for the Doctrine of the Faith. Instruction Dignitas Personae on certain Bioethical Questions. 8 Sept 2008. Available at http://www.vatican.va/roman_curia/congregations/cfaith/documents/rc_con_cfaith_doc_20081208_dignitas-personae_en.html. Accessed March 8, 2013.

Discussions worth Sharing

Page 23: Designer Babies The Future of Reproductive Technology

Questions Discussions worth Sharing