Genetics Blog Assignment: April 2014

Monday 7 April 2014

Intracytoplasmic Sperm Injection - Jaspinder Padda

Intracytoplasmic Sperm Injection

My topic is about Intracytoplasmic Sperm Injection which is a modern reproductive technology. Intracytoplasmic Sperm Injection (ICSI) is an invitro fertilization procedure in which a single sperm is injected directly into an egg.

The ICSI was invented to overcome male infertility problems or where the egg cannot be easily penetrated by the sperm and it is mostly used for these problems now a days. During ICSI the sperm doesn't need to travel to the egg or penetrate the outer layers of the egg. This means it can help couples where-
1. The mans sperm can't get to the egg at all.
2.can get to the egg but for some reason can't fertilize it.
3.the man has a very low or zero sperm count
4.A high percentage of abmormally shaped sperm. This can result in poor motility, which means the sperm can't swim well.

As with normal IVF (invitro fertilization) the woman is given fertility drugs to stimulate her ovaries to develop several mature eggs for fertilization.When the womans eggs are ready for collection the man and woman will undergo different procedures.
The man may produce a sperm sample himself by ejaculating into a cup on the same day the womans eggs are collected.If there is no sperm in his semen, doctors can extract sperm from him under local anaesthetic. The doctor will use a fine needle to take the sperm from the man-
- epididymis, in a procedure known as percutaneous epididymal sperm aspiraction (PESA)
or
-testicle, in a procedure known as testicular sperm aspiraction (TESA)

If these techniques don't remove enough sperm the doctor will use another method by taking a biopsy of testicular tissue, which sometimes has sperm attached. This is called testicular sperm extraction(TESE) or micro-TESE if the surgery is carried out with a micro-scope.The retrieved sperm is frozen. There can be some discomfort but it can be treated with pain killers.

After giving the woman a local anaesthetic the doctor will remove the womans eggs using a fine hollow needle.An ultrasound helps the doctor locate the eggs. Then the embryologist isolates individual sperm in the lab and injects them into individual eggs.Two days later the fertilized eggs become balls of cells called embryos.
The procedure then follows the same steps as IVF. The doctor transplants one or two embryos into the womans uterus through the cervix using a thin catheter.
Embryos may be transferred two to three days after the fertilisation or maybe five. Five days after fertilisation the embryo will be at the blastocyst stage. If all goes well , an embryo will attach to the womans uterus wall and continue to grow to become a baby.After about two weeks the mother can take a pregnancy test.
The success rate of ICSI is higher than conventional IVF methods.It highly depends upon the parents fertilitiy problems and age. The younger the parents are especially the mother the more chance of healthy eggs and higher the chance of success.If the mother is under 35 there is a 35 percent chance of success but lowers if the parents are older.
.
This is a video of ICSI-https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=IQujLI-ArMY

The disadvantages and problems-

ICSI is a more expensive procedure than IVF.
It has been in use only for a short time so experts are still learning its effects.
There can be multiple births and ectopic pregnancy.
There can be a risk of congenital abnormalities especially in male offspring.
There is some concern that ICSI may increase the rate of birth defects than in a natural conceived baby.

The religious and feminist objections to intacytoplasmic sperm injection (ICSI) are not really convincing but couples should be aware that ICSI may fail and be encouraged to discuss alternative options (e.g- use of donor sperm or adoption ).
In my opinion, scientists should develop some sort of technology which tells which sperm is strong so that ,that sperm can be used for the procedure which may result in less abnormalities and defects in the offspring because during natural conception only the strongest sperm is able to make it to the egg and fertilise it, weaker sperm don't make it.But because ICSI bypasses this natural process there can be an increased risk of rare genetic problems being carried by the sperm and being passes onto the child.So if a healthy and strong sperm is chosen then these rare genetic problems may be less and that may result in a healthy baby.

References-

www.babycentre.co.uk
www.myvmc.com
en.wikipedia.org/wiki/intracytoplasmic sperm injection

Saturday 5 April 2014

TAY SACH DISEASE: Ramzan Rana

Ramzan Rana April 1/2014

TAY SACH DISEASE

Report

The process of how the disease damages the nerve cells

Tay Sach disease is a very rare disease in today’s society and it is a disorder that progressively destroys nerve cells (neurons) in the brain and spinal cord. Tay Sach is a disorder that typically appear normal until the age of 3 to 6 months, but after when the kid starts to development the child starts to slow down its growths and the Child's muscles used for movement weaken, and all the working parts of a child slowly stops functioning well anymore and the kids know won’t be able to do a lot of the things that a child does. After the kid starts to get older you can notice more and more that the child has Tay Sach because a lot of things that child won’t be able to do like crawling, sitting, turning over, or stand with holding a chair. These things will be difficult for the child due to the lost of nerve cells and muscle strength and as the kid grows he would face a lot of new challenges and problems that could affect the child enormously like the child won’t have good vision, loss of hearing, and seizures, as the child gets older the problems will get developed to. Tay Sach is a harmful diseases that could affect a child in a way that could make their life horrible and miserable and Tay Sach is basically, that the kid won’t have the skills that a normal child will at the of 6 months and child with Tay Sach won’t be able to live as long and could die at early stages.

Tay Sach disease we could talk about this disease all day long, since they are a lot of causes involved why the child would have Tay Sach, can occur when neither of a person’s Hexa genes is working properly because of a mutation. The child could get this if one of the parent has one working copy of the Hexa gene and the other copy has a mutation in it, and the parents that has the one of the gene not functioning the way it’s supposed to that parents is the “carrier”, that means that the child has received his disease from the parents that lacks the hexa. The child could or couldn't have the disease because if both the parents have the disease there’s only 25% chance of the child having the Tay Sach diseases, and the Tay Sach disease has causes on the child and he could receive it from either side of the family. The kid usually ends up with the Tay Sach disease is because during the process a protein helps break down a chemical found in nerve tissue called gangliosides, without this the nerve cells in the brain cannot built up.

This Tay Sach disease is causes by a defective gene in the chromosome 15 and this happens when both parents carry the defective Tay-Sachs gene and defective gene is carried to the chromosome 15 making the child enhance the disease. During this process if only one of the genes has passed through to the child then the child is referred to as a carrier. Tay Sach is really a issue in some cases because it effects a lot of little innocent life’s because if one kid doesn't receive both of the defective gene, and only ends up getting one then they become the carrier and there generation in the future can have the disease and this Tay Sach is particularly only found in the chromosome 15.

Tay Sach is a big issue but not a lot of people understand how big of a disease it is, all the matters is that not allot of kids end up having Tay Sach so it doesn't really get the same attention as cancer or any other big disease, but this diseases always effect the kids that are young and there’s a lot of symptoms that go along with Tay Sach, there will be a lot of symptoms the kid has to face like, Deafness, Decreased eye contact, blindness, weak muscle loss of muscle strength. This factors will become a big part because as the kid develops and gets older like 1 year old the other effects will start to come to and there would be more problems know that the child have to face, he/she could be mental and lack social skills, the child could start to have seizures, or stop growing at the age of like 1 year. So the child starts to lose all the motor skills that it may have and won’t have the same nature a 1 year old will and all the kids with Tay Sach won’t be able to do much.

Since there so many symptoms to look upon, a lot of small organizations are trying to find a cure, but it’s not happening they can’t seem to figure what’s going on with the body and how can they prevent is there’s are couple small things the doctor talk about to stay fit and healthy for the kids. There’s nothing the doctors can do to except just provide the information and knowledge they have and a lot of the doctors just tell the parents to give their child medication regularly because the medications can reduce the symptoms for a while, prevent a lot of seizures, and they say family support matters the most don’t give up on anything you don’t know what can work. Some of the doctors say that a lot of physiotherapy because that could help with the muscles and make them strengthen up a little. So as we can see there’s a lot for symptoms for Tay Sach but, not too many ways to prevent it.

The video shows what happens to a child with Tay Sach…!!

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=SeoPF74QSms

The only way we can get the Tay Sach disease diagnosed, is a blood test can be taken to measure the body’s level of hexoaminidase. A patients with Tay-Sachs lack most or all of this protein whereas levels are reduced and a doctor will also take an eye examination to see if the patient has the classic red spot in the center of the eye’s to determine if he/she has a Tay Sach disease.

Know if a person has the disease or if they are the carrier. Even though we can easily figure out if a person has Tay Sach, the disease itself is really rare and only 100 kids in America are born in a year with Tay Sach, and most of those kids don’t really end up surviving for a long period of time because all they can do is take medications and treat themselves but, those kids don’t really have the capability to do anything like a normal child their age. A lot of these kids don’t survive for long, since this disease is really rare a lot of people don’t really look into it a lot.

The kids born with Tay Sachs disease have a lot of problems to face and until know no scientists or doctors are able to figure out a cure for the disease, are it because the disease is not that important or just that there’s not interest taken by the scientist . The research has shown that it’s not yet possible for scientist to find a 100% cure for the Tay Sachs and treatment for symptoms is medicine to control seizures and proper nutrition. That’s pretty much it and scientist and small organizations are still looking and trying to come up with a cure, but it’s hard to get a lot of people working on this project since Tay Sachs is a rare disease in the general population and since the genetic mutations that cause this disease are more common in people of eastern and central European. A lot of these cultures would have kids with Tay Sachs.

The kids start to lose control and don’t have a power to stand up or crawl anymore

There are two possible way of doing screening, first one is doing, Carrier testing determine and whether a person is unaffected and is only carrying one copy of a mutation. The second way is called the parental testing if you want to go back in to your history to find more details about if someone is a carrier. In parental testing there is usually greater information on of the family history and about the family, and who was the carrier in the beginning.

Tay Sach, since this disease has been discovered the lifespan of the kids having the Tay Sach diseases if not too much someone these kids die at a really young age like some of their kids start to feel the symptoms when they are 6 months old and after that it’s just hard for them to do the normal things that other people are able to do. The ethical issues concerning Tay Sach treatment is good because a lot of small organizations are trying to figure out a way we could really treat the disease and figure out a way to support these really young kids that are facing such huge problems at a small age. These kids don’t even know what happening with them, so Tay Sach has a lot of small organization looking at it and trying to find a way to cure this disease. There are ethical issues like people sometimes thought the disease can only get transmitted by the mother and she’s the carrier every time but, after like right know people know that from both parents anyone of them can be the carrier.

In my opinion, there’s always solution to a disease if not today tomorrow we can be able to find a cure but to finds the cure their lot of more information’s and experiment we have to do to test any possibilities of curing the Tay Sach disease. The disease is a big cause and there’s lack of knowledge on the disease because all scientist and doctors have figured out is medication and therapy. Since, there’s no cure I think that the doctors and scientists have to gain more information and study more on the disease and after that they could determine why the disease plays such a big part. The disease can only be cure if we can study more and try experimenting more on kids rather than just giving medication all the time. There’s a lot to learn more about the disease and one day someone will have the actual 100% cure on the disease.

My character:

What do you think about Tay Sach?
Any suggestions on how we can find way to cure the disease since many kids are dying?
While looking at all the information given above why do you think the scientist and doctors are still unable to find a cure?

List of references:

http://www.genome.gov/10001220

http://ghr.nlm.nih.gov/gene/HEXA

http://ghr.nlm.nih.gov/condition/tay-sachs-disease

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Tay%E2%80%93Sachs_disease

http://www.healthline.com/health/tay-sachs-disease

http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmedhealth/PMH0002390/

Newyork times article: http://www.nytimes.com/health/guides/disease/tay-sachs-disease/overview.html

http://my.clevelandclinic.org/childrens-hospital/health-info/diseases-conditions/neurological-conditions/hic-tay-sachs.aspx

http://www.ntsad.org/index.php/tay-sachs/causes

http://kidshealth.org/parent/medical/genetic/tay_sachs.html

http://www.nhs.uk/conditions/Tay-Sachs-disease/Pages/Introduction.aspx

Friday 4 April 2014

Oocyte cryopreservation- Shaambhavi Sharma

Oocyte Cryopreservation- Shaambhavi Sharma

Oocyte Cryopreservation is a technology where unfertilized eggs are extracted from the ovary, frozen and stored. These eggs can be later fertilised and used whenever she feels ready to be pregnant.
Oocyte is an immature female reproductive cell or gamete prior to fertilization; It is primary oocyte prior to completion of the first maturation division and a secondary oocyte in the
period between the first and second maturation divisions. is produced in the ovary during female gametogenesis.
The Formation of Oocyte or Oocytogenesis is a part of Oogenesis. In mammals it starts in the germinal epithilium.

The first cryopreservation of sperm was in 1953. Dr Christopher Chen from Australia reported the world’s first pregnancy using previously frozen oocytes in 1986.

Oocytes rarely survived the freeze/thaw aspects of the egg freezing process well primarily since the egg is the largest cell in the body and is mainly comprised of water. Orignially, the water content iniside the cell formed ice crystals that destroed the egg during the traditional egg freezing process.A number of advances in our knowledge of oocyte preservation, oocyte physiology and laboratory techniques are helping us make this a reality.This discovery was a breakthrough in the human reproductive sciences. This technology has helped women all over the world to conceive children but some of them it helped in specific are as follows:
1.Young women who are facing chemotherapy or irradiation for treatment of fatal diseases to preserve their fertility. People who undergo these radiations suffer destruction of gametes. Therefore, the opportunity to preserve this chance to have children later in life is crucial.
2. Women who are busy with their careers and decide to postpone motherhood; because of this technology can conceive children in older age despite diminished fertility rates.
3.The ability to use only the limited number of eggs necessary while freezing the unused eggs will allow couples using donor's eggs to dramatically cut their expenses.
4. Some couples have ethical issues with embryo freezing as they might believe that life begins at conception, but with oocyte cryopreservation one can preserve eggs without such issues.
Oocyte Conservation Techniques
The main difference between sperm freezing and oozyte cryopreservation is that
the change in cryoprotectants used to protect the egg during the egg freezing process.Cryoprotectant acts as an “anti-freeze” to protect the delicate eggs as the temperature drops, thus stopping it from freezing. The embryos are easier to thaw/freeze because their membranes tolerate stresses as for the sperms they are 1/80th the size of an egg.

The greatest success has been achieved with protocols that use slow egg freezing/rapid thaw protocols.Common cyroprotectants include an alcohol (1,2-propranediol), a carbohydrate (sucrose) and a solvent (DMSO). Researches show that increase in the concentration of sucrose results in comparatively safer and improved survival rates, survival and pregnancy rates. If oocytes are placed directly in a medium without cryoprotectant after thawing, they can swell and burst due to diffusion.

The use of nonpermiating molecules like sucrose act against the flow of water in cells. People have recently undertaken investigations using a process called vitrification; a process that utilizes ultra rapid egg freezing techniques.This technique is susceptible to human errors thus exposing eggs to damaging levels of cyroprotectant and direct exposure of liquid nitrogen which can cause infection.

Risks and Issues:

1. The cryopreservation process is risky and the mature oocyte can be easily damaged. Intracellular ice may damage plasma membrane and change the membrane bound enzymes and membranes.
2. Microtubules are temperature sensitive and depresisons can occur at 0 degree celcius. This is damamge to the meiotic spindle that may cause nondisjunction.
3.Cytoplasmic organelles such as mitochondria are susceptible to damage.
4.Additionally, oocyte DNA appears to be destroyed via apoptosis during cryopreservation and subsequent culture , which may also play a role in the overall poor recovery of normal oocytes and embryos.
4. Parents might have ethical issues with this procedure because of it's unnatural nature.

Ethical Issues

1.Some people might believe that a woman is exploited through egg harvesting.
2. Cryopreservation is morally problematic for many from a Christian worldview such eggs are intended for use outside of the marital relationship or as a means of treating infertility within a marraige which would introduce a third party.

I think this process can further be enhanced if there is a substitute for nitrogen so that there is no infection caused when there is a leak; also if there is a container that can keep the temperature stable for longer than 24 hours if there is a power loss so that the cell membrane does not collapse.

Help:

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Oocyte#Formation

http://www.ivf-indiana.com/education/egg-freezing-risks-benefits.html
http://www.nyufertilitycenter.org/egg_freezing/cryopreservation_process
http://www.extendfertility.com/oocyte-cryopreservation.htm

http://www.rbmojournal.com/search/quick?search_area=journal&search_text1=cryopreservation&restrictName.rbmo=rbmo
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Oocyte_cryopreservation#Success_rates
https://www.thieme-connect.com/ejournals/abstract/10.1055/s-2002-23515
http://cbhd.org/content/egg-cryopreservation-update-emerging-reproductive-technology

In Vitro Maturation By: Amna Ashiq

In Vitro Maturation

There are so many types of technologies out there and they are very useful to many. One of the many technologies is In Vitro Maturation (IVM). In vitro maturation is a type of technology that is used to help infertile couples conceive a child. It was also developed so that there is a cheaper and safer fertility treatment.

Before I go on talking about what in vitro maturation actually is, you’re going to have to understand what each word means. In vitro is Latin for “in glass”. In vitro is a biological process that occurs and is controlled in laboratories in an artificial environment that is outside the organism’s normal setting. Maturation means the act or the process of maturing. If I put that together, it basically means an organism maturing in vitro or in a glass. Now that I have broken down the word, it will be easier to further understand what the whole technology is all about.

In vitro maturation is a procedure where immature eggs are collected from the ovaries and are matured in the laboratory and it takes only one to two days (24-48 hours).

The procedure for IVM:

1) Eggs are collected when they are immature (that is the earliest stage of the egg).

2) In the laboratory, the eggs are matured in a dish and are placed in an incubator and it takes only 24-48 hours. Small amounts or sometimes no hormones are added.

3) The eggs are fertilized with the partners or donors sperm once they are mature.

4) The embryos are then transferred to the womb 2-5 days after fertilization.

Immature Oocyte immediately after retrieval

Mature Oocyte after 36 hours of retrieval

An embryo created through IVM

IVM is the process that was initially developed on cows and other domesticated animals. Pincus and Enzmann had first followed this procedure in 1935. Later on, in 1965, R.G. Edwards had demonstrated IVM of human eggs. In 1991, the first human birth resulted because of IVM. After that, there had been many modifications and changes done to process of IVM so there can be more efficient and improved outcomes.

Since IVM is a new technique and has only been around for a decade, not many doctors and scientists have researched more into this process and because there’s not much research done, this technology is still considered to be experimental. The rates for IVM being successful and what the long-term impacts are still not understood clearly because it has not been around for a long time.Only 400 babies around the world have been born through IVM.

During this process, not many eggs are collected because they are still immature and also if they do get collected, the eggs sometimes don’t get fertilized by the partners or donors sperm because they haven’t matured. The eggs collected have to handled very carefully because they are not mature eggs and are very sensitive. Also, there can be a problem for the sperm to penetrate the eggs because the outer layer of the eggs can become very tough. The implantation rates through IVM are quite low. IVM does not guarantee 100% results. Another factor that is not making IVM successful is the woman’s age. A normal 35 year old woman can expect 32 % success rates with IVM. Like other fertility treatments, IVM is not guaranteed.

Just like any other fertility treatment, IVM is not meant for all the women. Women that usually succeed from IVM are :

women who have a higher risk of having ovarian hyperstimulation syndrome (OHSS) and also including women with polycystic ovarian syndrome (PCOS)
women with normal menstrual cycle
women who are younger

Women below the age of 35 hold a better likelihood of carrying many eggs so their success rates are higher. There is a 60-70% chance of collecting the immature eggs and then maturing them, 65-75% chance of fertilizing them, 10% chance of implanting the fertilized eggs in the womb and 20-30% chance of the women getting pregnant. Since the implantation rates are lower, there is not a high chance of the woman getting pregnant. The average clinical results of IVM are:

about 350 cycles
egg maturation : 80%
clinical pregnancy rate : 33.3%
live births : 70

IVM does not require alot of fertility medication which lowers your risk of having ovarian hyperstimulation syndrome (OHSS) which is a serious complication. The treatment for IVM requires shorter treatment (meaning less monitoring) and less time. The good thing about in vitro maturation is that the treatment is not as expensive as compared to other fertility treatments like the traditional in vitro fertilization (IVF) which costs around $15,000 - $20,000 for a cycle. IVM costs around $3,000 - $6,000 for a cycle.

Since this technology, in vitro maturation, has not been around for a very long time, it does not have any ethical issues.

Video on IVM:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=3WqBqZ_SPq8

Scientists could improve this technology by actually spending more time researching into why there is not a higher rate of success for normal women that do not have OHSS and PCOS. Also, the children that have been born through the process of IVM, should be checked atleast every month to see what the effects of IVM are. Ex. does the child function normally, does the child have any disorders, etc. Lastly, there should be alot of labratories around the world that should encouraged to research more about IVM because there are alot of couples that are getting very bad responses through fertility treatments just because they are not well developed.

Do you think that this will be a successful treatment once there is enough research done and will there be any ethical issues regarding this technology?

Resources:

http://www.coopersurgical.com/ourproducts/Pages/IVMMediaKit.aspx?order1=ART-1600&lc=Sage%20Media&name=SAGE%C2%AE%20In-Vitro%20Maturation%20Media&tc=1

http://www.fertilityauthority.com/treatment/vitro-maturation-ivm
http://www.mcgillivf.com/e/McGillIVF.asp?page=184.186.212
http://discovermagazine.com/2009/jun/16-the-newest-in-fertility-treatments-pregnancy-for-half-the-cost
http://www.britishfertilitysociety.org.uk/practicepolicy/documents/vitro.pdf
http://www.ivfflorida.com/ivm.asp

AquAdvantage Salmon -Casey Samaroo

Casey Samaroo

AquAdvantage Salmon

AquAdvantage salmon is a genetically modified salmon more specifically it is a genetically modified Atlantic salmon by AquaBounty Technologies. Typically people would ask how is the fish modified and is it healthy to eat?

The whole purpose of this modification is to grow salmon year round as well as increase the rate of physical growth. AquaBounty does this by combining a growth hormone-regulating gene from a Pacific Chinook salmon and an anti freeze protein from an Ocean Pout and adds it to the Atlantic salmon.

The genetic modification of animals in most needed for animals that are becoming endangered or close to being endangered

The main reason AquaBounty made this genetic modificaition was because they felt that the current growth rate of wild Atlantic salmon was too slow to meet the future market demands for this fish. They claim they could do this without changing the features of the fish. AquaBounty produced the chart shown above which shows that for a 4kg salmon they are able to reduce the growth time by 25%. Traditional fish farmers dispute these claims.

As helpful as it may be there are some harm that can come from making these genetically modified fish. For one, we don't know enough about these modifications and the possible affects it could have on the species, animals that consume the modified fish and the general environment.

There are many things that could go wrong with genetically modifying Salmon, for example they could physically harm the wild salmon by reproducing with them this could happen because of the DNA strands are triploid but at times some of the genetically modified fish could be diploid as wild salon are diploid.These modified fish could contaminate the environment ,right here in Canada the land based, fresh water egg production facility is located. In Prince Edwards Island, Canada. Historically, Atlantic salmon lived in the fresh bodies of water in this area, but as of recent wild salmon populations remain in the area due to over development, the inability to migrate, and acid rain. In the winter, temperatures in bodies of water near the facility are too low for wild salmon, although spring and summer temperatures are survivable to salmon. Also because of a high amount of salt in the water it is very hard for the fish to survive either way. What about the effects of the modification on human health? how would it affect people who are allergic to salmon is it edible for them? what are the long term effects on our bodies with this modification? We don't have the answers to these questions yet and clearly there is not enough known about these modifications and that they should take a closer look as to what we are feeding other animals and humans as well.

There are many ethical problems with taking fish and genetically modifying them. For one how would you like it if someone captured you from your home and decided to change everything about you and in reality make you an entirely new person? we take these fish from their natural habitat and bring them into a new area and preform tests on them and use it for your own betterment they are animals as well we think we are above them but they cant control that we say that bullying is bad and we in turn are the biggest bullies of them all. Another ethical issue would be that we are messing with nature we are no longer natural we have become artificial and have to change everything we have learnt and now modify that to keep up with the ever so changing time we live in. In addition some of our more religious members of the population would say that we are all gods creatures and should treat each other equally but we decide that we can change everything because we are above everything else.

In conclusion yes i do believe that this technology should be used worldwide and i say this because we could use this technology to help endangered species to reproduce faster and repopulate the species but there should be some very strict guidelines and close watch from the government, this so we don't overpopulate the species or start to experiment just for the curiosity of the human mind and the greed for money. Yes it could be very valuable but only if it is used correctly as the amount of fish being ate in the past decade has increased quite dramatically and this will help the demand and keep the fish market blooming.

Pros of Genetically Modified Fish

Better resistance to weather
Can grow year round
Faster growth
Could be more nutritious
Better tasting
Spend less money producing more food
can repopulate endangered species

Cons of Genetically Modified Fish

Unexpected Side-Effects
Reduced Species Diversity
Ecological Damage
Ethically wrong
Messing with nature
The Benefits May Not Be Available to Everyone

So fellow bloggers do you believe the pros of genetically modifying fish outweigh the cons?

AquAdvantage Salmon

References
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/AquAdvantage_salmon
http://curiosity.discovery.com/question/important-uses-of-genetic-engineering
http://www.biofortified.org/2010/10/salmon/

GloFish By:Wiam Saad

GloFish are genetically modified fish that come in many different bright neon colours. GloFish are created by adding a fluorescence gene to the unhatched fish egg. The fish will then be able to pass the fluorescence trait to its offspring upon maturity.And the offspring's will also pass on the trait.

The GloFish were invented to detect pollutants and toxins in the water. The GloFish addresses the problem of water pollution.The scientists created a switch like reaction in the fish that will cause the always-fluorescing fish to glow in the presence of pollutants/toxins. A fish with no fluorescence signals the water is safe, while a fluorescing fish will signal toxins in the environment.GloFish have been quite successful in the untied states since they were introduced in 2003, although they are prohibited here in Canada.

These GloFish have been needed by scientists all around the world to comprehend "important questions in genetics, molecular biology, and vertebrate development." GloFish have also helped in the understanding of cellular disease/development, cancer and gene therapy.

Although the GloFish is said to be able to detect toxins in the environment some folks say GloFish are a hazard to the environment. Because some groups,such as the Center for Food Safety, have a concern that the fish "will make it into the wild and disrupt natural biodiversity." The ethical problem is not with GloFish but that they were bio-engineered. A few people believe that they should be banned, but what they fail to understand is that the fish are not being harmed in the process.The unhatched egg receives a fluorescence gene and from then on all off-springs can develop the hereditary gene.

In my opinion I think GloFish should be world wide.The GloFish would be able to help further studies about pollution/toxins in the aquatic environment and they make excellent pets.The GloFish allows people to enjoy their glowing pet and also promotes "the beneficial scientific goals behind their development." Also a portion of the profit gets sent to the scientific lab were these Glofish are created to help with the research. so to conclude I do think GloFish should be world wide.

Do you think GloFish are hazardous to the environment and should they be world wide?

http://www.glofish.com/about/faq/
http://www.biofortified.org/2012/09/are-glofish-bad-for-the-environment/
abcnews.go.com/blogs/technology/2012/09/neon-genetically-modified-glofish-could-threaten-natural-species/
http://freshaquarium.about.com/u/ua/newscontestsandpolls/glowowners.htm
http://www.redorbit.com/education/reference_library/science_1/genetically_modified_organisms/1112965703/glofish/

Spider-goat By: Afiya Khan

Spider-goat

Genetic engineering of different species is no longer just an absurd idea. It has become a wide spread frenzy in which numerous scientists and researches have began to investigate and has had a tremendous amount of success. In May of 2010, researchers at the University of Wyoming developed a way in which they incorporated a spiders' silk-spinning genes into a normal goat.

The overall strength and elasticity of a spider's silk fiber is beyond belief. In the medical world, the use of spider silk fiber can be applied for creating artificial ligaments and tendons. The use of spider silk can also include creating security vests or even fishing lines. However, due to spiders' being territorial insects, keeping them in captivity in large amounts has been unsuccessful. Therefore, the idea of injecting another species with the spiders' gene was developed, in order to overcome this obstacle. Randy Lewis, a molecular biology professor at Wyoming came up with this suggestion. By injecting the goats, it would cause them to only produce milk that contained protein, which is the equivalent to the spider's silk fiber.

The spider-goat technology is a convenient and cheap way to produce a large amount of spider silk fiber. The first step to this process is by extracting the spiders' dragline silk gene and then injecting it into goats. This experiment was done by Lewis, wherein he injected a total of ten goats. However, out of the ten goats only a mere three adapted and carried the gene. The other seven were normal and had no trace of the gene. Overtime, the goats began to produce milk that did contain sufficient amounts of protein, making the experiment a complete success.

This technology is not limited to any part of the world. Many countries which are striving for advances in the medical world, would see this technology as needed. The numerous uses of the silk can help surgeons and doctors save lives, by creating needed muscle parts.

Spider-goat engineering does not bring about many known problems. It does not harm the goat or cause any health concerns for the animal. The injection of the gene is harmless and requires very little maintenance. On the other hand, like most genetic engineering experiments, the outcome is never 100% successful. For example, as stated before, only three out of ten goats were able to produce the milk enriched with protein. These results prove that although the gene transplant can be done, it is not certain to work 10/10 times.

Many individuals may disagree with scientists tampering and changing an animals' genetic structure. They do not approve of the spiders' silk being produced from a mutated goat. Although the experiments are done for human benefits, it does not give scientists permission to alter another species genetic material. These people view the the spider-goat technology as unethical and cruel towards innocent goats. In addition, the goats that end up not being able to produce the protein milk, are required by law to be euthanized since they have been genetically modified.

Personally, I do not think that this technology should be used worldwide. It does in fact benefit us as humans, however, in the process many innocent animals are killed. I believe that the ethical issues out weigh the medical pros. Therefore, the use of this technology should be limited to a small amount of countries that are only in desperate need of it. What results do you think the spider-goat technology will produce, if used in the medical world to create artificial ligaments and tendons? Will it have disappointing or satisfying results? Explain your opinion.

References:
http://phys.org/news194539934.html
http://www.theguardian.com/science/2012/jan/14/synthetic-biology-spider-goat-genetics
https://sites.google.com/site/noespidergoat/opposition

Cystic Fibrosis -Fyzah Shaukat

Fyzah Shaukat

Cystic Fibrosis

The Genetic disorder I will be discussing about today is called Cystic Fibrosis. What is Cystic Fibrosis? Cystic Fibrosis is a hereditary (parents to offspring) disorder, affecting the exocrine glands. What this disorder causes is the production of abnormally thick mucus leading to the blockage of the pancreatic ducts, intestines and bronchi. It often results in an respiratory infection. The reason why this is considered as a disorder is mucus is a substance made by tissues that line some organs and body cavities like the lungs and nose. This is considered normal due to it keeping our organs moist and preventing it from drying out and getting infected. What Cystic Fibrosis (CF) does it that it makes the mucus become thick and sticks, causing it to build up and block your airways. The Cystic fibrosis transmembrane conductance regulator are the chromosomes responsible for the protein functions, as a channel it crosses the membrane of cells that produce mucus, sweat, saliva, tears, and digestive enzymes.

It occurs by the transport of chloride ions in this CFTR control the movement of the water and the fluids which if transported and produced normally creates thin liquid, if the transportation does not produce the regular thin liquid then thick sticky mucus is produced causing Cystic Fibrosis to occur. This bodily disorder tends to take root in children and young adults much more than adults, when talking about this disorder just in general there is common disorder amongst Central and Northern European counties, but occurs in many demographic groups around the world.

In modern technology there is almost nothing science hasn't been able to build and use for health purposes. There are several ways Cystic Fibrosis can be detected and diagnosed, there is a total of 5 different ways doctors can test to see whether someone might be a carrier of this disorder. The 5 different ways are: Newborn screening, Sweat test, Prenatal screening, Cystic Fibrosis carrier testing and others.

Cystic Fibrosis signs and symptoms vary, depending on things such as the severity of the case and each and every individual. Symptoms may worsen or improve as time passes, In some children symptoms being during infancy. Whereas other people may not experience the disorders properties until adolescence or adulthood. But even so, some common symptoms that occur internally are: Persistent coughs that produces thick spit and mucus, wheezing, breathlessness, decreased ability to exercise, repeated lung infections, inflamed nasal passages or a stuff nose. Other symptoms can be poor weight gain and growth, intestinal blockage, and severe constipation. It is extremely diffucilt to come to a consensus of the average life expentency of someone who carries the Cystic Fibrosis disorder in their genes, the life span of someone carrying this disorder can vary based on many factors. Aspects such as age of disorder, and severity of disease can make a big difference but even so according to the most recent Patient Registry data, the median predicted age of people carrying the disease is their early 40's.

Treating Cystic Fibrosis is not a simple task, it is a very complex treatment due to having to treat the disorder in different places of your body, mainly the lungs and digestive system. Because the type and severity of CF symptoms can differ widely from person to person, there is no typical treatment plan for people with the disease. Since there is no actual final treatment, people carrying the disease do day-to-day airway clearances, and take inhaled medicines.

When talking about ethical issues, Cystic Fibrosis does concern the public due to millions of people dying in their early 30's and 40's. There is something called Population based screening. It implies offering a program of carrier testing, with consent and genetic counselling. The purpose of such screening would be to allow people to make informed reproductive decisions with regard to the risk of Cystic Fibrosis in their offspring.

In my opinion, Cystic Fibrosis is a very tragic and yet somehow common disorder, though millions of people die in their early stages of life due to this I feel the disorder is not given the attention is deserves. I feel if we paid more attention and had much more extensive research done this disease would deteriorate soon enough. Science has helped us create medicine, and new technology detect and treat disorders and diseases. I feel if we give the same amount of attention to Cystic Fibrosis as we do to for example Cancer, we would be able to save the lives of many children and young adults. In Your opinion, after reading this article do you think we undermine this disorder? Do you think we are providing enough of our energy and time into this disorder as we are for cancer?.

List of references (websites):

http://www.nhlbi.nih.gov/health/health-topics/topics/cf/

http://ghr.nlm.nih.gov/gene/CFTR

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Cystic_fibrosis

http://www.nlm.nih.gov/medlineplus/tutorials/cysticfibrosis/id289105.pdf

http://www.mayoclinic.org/diseases-conditions/cystic-fibrosis/basics/symptoms/con-20013731

https://www.genome.gov/10001755

List of references (Images):

http://discovermagazine.com/~/media/Images/Issues/2013/September/a-look-inside-cystic-fibrosis.jpg

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Cystic_fibrosis

That's it for now guys!

Golden Rice - Genetic Engineering

Genetic Engineering Technology - Golden Rice

Golden rice is the key to overcome the deficiency of vitamin A due to its potentials toward bringing changes in human bodies. Golden rice is produced through a scientific mutation called genetic engineering (A physical process in which a gene from an organism is removed and added in another organism to observe how that particular trait is expressed in that organism). Actually, golden rice is mainly generated to complete the deficiency of vitamin A in the parts of world where sources of vitamin A are not very favourable. The invention of golden rice is originated from a type of rice called Oryza sativa, which is not very difficult to mutate into other forms of rice through genetic engineering. The main goal of scientists were to produce golden rice to cover the shortage of beta – carotene (fundamental of vitamin A), i.e. it is type of pigment, usually in red or orange colour. In the creation of this rice, there were two genes involved to perform the transformation of an ordinary Oryza sativa, which were called phytoene synthase (psy) and carotene desaturase (crtl). Plants are able to produce these pigments (Beta carotene) on their own located at the part of their leaves, where the process of photosynthesis takes place, but the correct location is at the endosperm (food storage). The plant component of rice cannot be eaten to get the possible vitamin. The mechanism is actually inactivated in parts of grains, which is the component that can be consumed by humans. Thus, these plants need an external help to get transformed or start containing to provide high levels of beta – carotene. In the further research and laboratory tests, scientists find out that the golden rice favors the bioavailability of vitamin A under natural conditions (grown in fields), rather than cultivated in the atmosphere of greenhouse gases. There was an interesting experiment conducted by a group of scientists as they decided to enhance the effects of golden rice by conducting a similar gene implant as in the creation of golden rice 2. They collaborated (psy) and (crtl) genes, which came from maize and the original golden rice. This gene implant brought significant increase in the levels of beta – carotene, approximately including 23 times extra vitamin A than the original golden rice was obtained from it, after testing. It is one of the main source to decrease the chances of getting the deficiency of vitamin A as there are hundreds of complications related to this disease. Around the globe, there are millions of people who are diagnosed with the deficiency of vitamin A and suffer from permanent eye – blindness, night blindness, degradation of immune functioning, and even death in severe cases. Thus, there have been a lot discussion on this serious issue and many campaigns have been formed to tackle against this preventable disorder.

This technology has many considerable benefits, not only toward undeveloped countries, but also to bring relief in developed countries as well. Golden rice has been showing great results in the areas of world where only rice is mainly consumed as food. People living in these areas are much likely to have a deficiency of vitamin A as do they not have enough sources to compensate the necessary intake of vitamin A. Since, scientists have upgraded Golden rice (Golden Rice 2) into a more effective supplement to enhance its outcome, people in rural areas are encouraged to grow golden rice, so that their dependency on ordinary rice could be transformed into an intake of healthy supplements. Some of the statistics also state that an average diet of golden rice is better than any of naturally beta – carotene vegetables.

Some of the drawbacks of this technology are that when the golden rice is artificially produced, it is composed of various toxins to resists itself from pests. These toxins are successful in terms to protecting the rice from pests, however, it contaminates the rice itself and leaks into the soil beneath it, causing high levels of acid in soil and destroy healthy soil microbes for plant growth. One of the other cons is that golden rice’s pollens have the capability of moving for a long distance and it could pollinate other wild plants (same type) as their further generations would fall under this contamination as well. Apart from plants, over dosage of golden could cause increase in the levels of vitamin A, which would result to hypervitaminosis A.

Beside some physical issues of golden rice, it has to be considered ethically as well. Some people might refuse to consume this type of rice as it genetically transformed with different genes from wild plants and from a bacteria found in soil. People might get negative health conditions due to the intake of this rice and might not recover properly. Since, this technology has not been tested (applied) on animals, it not safe for humans to considerate eating the golden rice. The use of golden rice is also supporting the genetic alterations to normal organisms, which is banned and could be misused.

In my opinion golden rice should be encouraged in all parts of the world because people who are only dependent on rice would get their appropriate consumption and others would be helped too. Some organisations like Green Peace opposes this campaign due to some unrealistic reasons, thus, they are protesting against this act. However, according to statistics, golden rice has shown incredible results, especially in Asian countries where malnutrition is higher. Therefore, golden rice must be compulsory to be grown around the world, so that millions of people suffering from it could survive and live a healthy life. (Should it be authorised to conduct genetic modifications by inserting genes from various unknown sources in plants to overcome some sort of deficiency or disease?)