Running head: Argumentative Paper: Gene Therapy, Thesis of Nursing

Download Running head: Argumentative Paper: Gene Therapy and more Thesis Nursing in PDF only on Docsity! Running head: Argumentative Paper: Gene Therapy Argumentative Paper: Gene Therapy Jimmy Yip Chamberlain College of Nursing Phil347N: Critical Thinking January 2020 Gene Therapy 2 Gene Therapy SCID, hemophilia, muscular dystrophy, cystic fibrosis, and certain cancers are just a few genetic diseases that children can be born with. While some of these diseases is not a death sentence to those children, they live with a severely reduced quality of life, there are some that are a death sentence to those born with it. There is hope however, in the last two decades there have been major scientific advancements in the field of gene therapy. Imagine, taking down the disease before it can even begin to hurt an unlucky child or treat a suffering patient and cure him of the disease. Scientists have found if the mutated genes that cause the disease were to be changed back to their normal forms or replaced with a working gene, the disease would not manifest itself. This was tested in 1990 with the first gene therapy trial in the US, to treat a little girl who has SCID and was found to work temporarily. SCID is short for severe combined immunodeficiency and the children that are born with it are born without a working immune system [9]. Since that test in 1990 there have been multiple successes in treating SCID, culminating in the announcement in November 2013 that there had been five children who were successfully treated with gene therapy and were doing well [3]. With these successes, gene therapy was well on its way to becoming front page news, but public perception of the fast- growing science was negative as movies and books painted it as a eugenics movement if research for gene therapy continued. This sparked a hard look into the ethics of gene therapy and the ramifications that it could have on society. As time passed and new technology and techniques were researched, more information was released and explained to the public showing the growing field in a positive light and removing the fears and stigma associated with gene therapy. Use of Vectors Gene Therapy 5 germline therapeutic uses, and germline enhancement applications [8]. To understand these classes germline and somatic must be defined. Germline cells are gametes that contain traits that can be passed onto future generations and somatic is every other cell such as muscle, liver, etc. that only affects the body it is contained within. Somatic therapeutic uses include preventing or treating a genetic disease or disability in only the patient. Somatic enhancements cover procedures that would enhance a human with increased strength or stamina. Germline therapeutic and enhancement applications is almost the same as somatic except the modified genes will affect future offspring rather than the patient. Using these two distinctions, pitfalls that will be encountered will be more easily navigated or avoided. With the explosive growth seen by gene therapy in the last decade there will undoubtably be improvements in techniques and technology, the perfect vector may be created in the future. It is unknown what will be discovered or how it will affect society, but fear of the unknown should not stop the progress that has been made to cure what was previously incurable and give those that are suffering a better life. Fear is best used as a reason to be better prepared and ready for whatever new discoveries may bring. Gene therapy cannot be judged as a whole and must be broken down and judged on a case by case basis on whether it is a valid option. At the end of the day, the top priority of scientists is to improve the quality of life for those with the misfortune to be born with a disease or condition. Gene Therapy 6 References [1] Delhove, J., Osenk, I., Prichard, I., & Donnelley, M. (2020). Public Acceptability of Gene Therapy and Gene Editing for Human Use: A Systematic Review. Human Gene Therapy, 31(1-2), 20–46. doi: 10.1089/hum.2019.197 [2] Gene therapy. (n.d.). Retrieved February 21, 2020, from https:// www.dictionary.com/browse/gene-therapy?s=t [3] Gene Therapy - A Revolution in Progress: Human Genetics and Medical Research. (n.d.). Retrieved February 21, 2020, from https://history.nih.gov/exhibits/genetics/sect4.htm [4] Kay, M. A., Glorioso, J. C., & Naldini, L. (2001, January). Viral vectors for gene therapy: the art of turning infectious agents into vehicles of therapeutics. Retrieved February 9, 2020, from https:// www.nature.com/articles/nm0101_33 [5] Kay, M. A., Liu, D., & Hoogerbrugge, P. M. (1997, November 25). Gene therapy. Retrieved February 9, 2020, from https:// www.pnas.org/con5tent/94/24/12744 [6] Kirby, D. A. (2000, July). Science Fiction Studies. Retrieved February 22, 2020, from https:// www.depauw.edu/sfs/essays/gattaca.htm [7] Robillard, J. M., Roskams-Edris, D., Kuzeljevic, B., & Illes, J. (2014). Prevailing Public Perceptions of the Ethics of Gene Therapy. Human Gene Therapy, 25(8), 740–746. doi: 10.1089/hum.2014.030 [8] Santas, G. (2019). CRISPR and The Ethics of Gene Editing: A Modest Framework for Discussion. International Journal of Clinical Research and Trials, 4(198), 1–7. doi: https://doi. org/10.15344/2456-8007/2019/138 Gene Therapy 7 [9] Severe Combined Immunodeficiency (SCID). (2019, April 4). Retrieved February 23, 2020, from https://www.niaid.nih.gov/diseases-conditions/severe-combined-immunodeficiency- scid