Running Head: TRANSGENICS 1 Transgenics: The Scientific Mystery of Today’s Species Leanna B. Rippey Radford University: Core 201 Running Head: TRANSGENICS 2 Abstract Transgenic animals are species that exhibit traits not normally found in an animal. The organism is genetically engineered by removing certain genes and modifying them to function differently in another species. There are many pros and cons to transgenic research. The genes can produce a stronger organism, more capable of producing the goods desired. Transgenics are not organisms being altered through selective breeding, but through technological methods. These technological methods of breeding organisms produces new life forms that sometimes cross species boundaries, and that have long term effects on the environment. Also, the blending of DNA from different organisms may cause unintended personal, social, and cultural consequences. The genes are not normally found in the organism and can produce mass changes. This paper argues that present genetic engineering of species through transgenic research is ethically wrong due to the lack of information given to the general public, causing the De Minimis Dilemma, which states that individuals hold different views of safety. Transgenic research does not typically give the necessary information to develop an opinion of the safety features that the animals are guaranteed in the experiments. Running Head: TRANSGENICS 3 Transgenic research was first recognized as a possibility when DNA was discovered and scientists realized that you could use DNA to construct bacteria and other genes through genetic engineering practices. James Watson and Francis Crick discovered DNA in 1953, which developed transgenic research in the 1950s with Joshua Lederberg. Lederberg pioneered the earliest transgenic techniques by beginning genetic engineering with the shuffling of genetic materials with bacteria (Whitesides, 2003, pp. 529-530). Legerberg was the first to use transgenic research to produce a different gene that could modify another organism in a desired way. Transgenics is the ability to introduce foreign or genetically modified genes into the gene line of an organism and let the genes encounter genetic manipulation (Jaenisch, 1988, p. 1468). Transgenic cells have the ability to pass on the new characteristics to new cells when they reproduce because the organism will reproduce the foreign transgenes during cell division (World of Micrbiology and Immunology, 2003, p. 551). The gene that was genetically modified will be produced for future generations when the organism reproduces because cell division uses the modified gene, even though it is foreign to the organism. Transgenic research has been completed on many different organisms and the focus of this text will be genetic modification of animals. There are many pros and cons to transgenic or genetic engineering in species of animals. Jaenish (1988) states to the American Association for the Advancement of Science that, “The information gained from the use of the transgenic technology is relevant to almost any aspect of modern biology including developmental gene regulation, the action of oncogenes, the immune system, and mammalian development” (p, 1468). There are also many cons with the production of transgenic organism. Cons involved in transgenic research can include: mutations on organisms, the creation of new species potentially may blur the species boundaries, the long term Running Head: TRANSGENICS 4 effects on the organism and the environment, and unintentional personal, social, and cultural consequences (Glenn, 2004, para.1). The organism that the research is tested on could bring many benefits to society, but the safety of the experiments or the gene mutations of genetic engineering techniques are not looked upon when the testing begins. The organism may be enduring intense pain or other changes that cannot be prevented because the safety features are not understood or agreed on by scientists and the public as a whole. They will also not have any valuable input on the effects that the transgenic research has nor can the research be completely reversed if a problem occurs because safety is not a main focus in the genetic engineering of an animal. This paper argues that present genetic engineering of species through transgenic research is ethically wrong due to the lack of information given to the general public, causing the De Minimis Dilemma, which states that individuals hold different views of safety. Without the proper safety precautions, animals could be harmed without the general public knowing the risks that the animals are undergoing. The pros and cons will be reviewed in this research paper and the value of safety will ethically dismantle the argument supporting the genetic engineering of an organism for the benefit of humans. One of the many pros of genetic engineering or transgenic research on animals is the fact that many human and other diseases found in organisms can be studied in more detail in search of a cure. Many studies are completed by scientists to discover cures for diseases like renal disease. Medicine is ever changing and the use of animals to research the genes and how a slight modification in the gene pool could prevent or aid in the symptoms of a disease. Scientists perform genetic engineering techniques on organisms to find the solutions to medical issues that humans face around the world, and find the most effective solutions for the creation of medicine and cures. Other medical aspects that transgenic organisms are included in are: transplant organs Running Head: TRANSGENICS 5 by aiding in the production of an exact match, nutritional supplements and pharmaceuticals through modified animal milk, and aiding in the production of red blood cells. A study completed in 2005 about the end stages of renal diseases stated, “Although the use of these animals (mainly knockouts) has highlighted some pitfalls of this approach (compensation by closely related gene products, absence of temporal knockouts) it has brought important information about the role of specific gene-products…” (Bascands & Schanstra, 2005, p. 925). Even though the study proved that the animals may have suffered some knock-outs and other pitfalls, researchers found many benefits on how to aid those who suffer from renal disease. Further use of these animals, especially in combination with pharmacologic tools, produces molecules and process that gave scientists the necessary knowledge needed to find a medicine for the diseases that humans and other organisms suffer from. The research helped scientists find many factors that cause the symptoms of renal disease and they can better find a solution with the signs that the animals produced (Bascands & Schanstra, 2005, p. 925). Patients die every day because of the lack of transplant organs available. Transgenic pigs may become the solution to the shortage of hearts, livers, and other transplant organs that are desperately needed. Endang Tri Margawati (2003) says, “Currently, xenotransplantation is hampered by a pig protein that can cause donor rejection but research is underway to remove the pig protein and replace it with a human protein” (para. 21). The pig’s genes will be engineered to suit the human, and the organs will be modified by removing aspects of the pig that would not be sustained in the body of a human or other organism. The organism will then be given the organ and since the pig aspects will be removed, it will be able to function as the organ needed by the transplant patient. Running Head: TRANSGENICS 6 Another aspect of medicine that benefits from the use of transgenic animals is that animal milk can be changed by the use of transgenics to aid in the creation of supplements and pharmaceuticals that can benefit humans and other organisms. Products such as insulin, growth hormone, and blood anti-clotting factors may soon be or have already been obtained by the milk of transgenic animals. It is “underway to manufacture milk through transgenesis for treatment of debilitating diseases such as phenylketonuria (PKU), hereditary emphysema, and cystic fibrosis” (Margawati, 2003, para. 22). These diseases can have solutions with the use of a product that animals naturally produce, just by altering their genes to sustain the supplements that are needed in suffering patients. The milk of the transgenic animal will have the nutrients that a patient needs and will create the modifications needed for a patient to live a better life through the consumption of the supplements in the genetically modified organism. Finally, the research of transgenics for the use of medicine is concluded by the reproduction of red blood cells in the human body. With the use of milk of a transgenic organism, scientists have reason to believe that they can discover a way to reproduce red blood cells. It will add a normal copy of a gene that produces non-working red blood cells with a copy of the same gene that is proper working order (Margawati, 2003, para. 24). This will aid in finding cures for over 5,000 named genetic diseases and many other issues that can affect an organism; also allowing scientists to find a solution to help patients suffering from red blood cell malfunctions. Agricultural applications are also greatly affected by the use of transgenic animals. Herds with desired traits can be manufactured by genetic engineering. Traditional selective breeding is difficult and risky, but with transgenic research, scientists have discovered ways to modify genes in organisms to show a desired trait without the time consuming task of selective Running Head: TRANSGENICS 7 breeding. Scientists can also use the genetic engineering techniques to make livestock larger and less resistant to disease. Just like the medical research completed by Bascands and Schanstra (2005), other animals can have genes added to their gene pool to produce lower chances of contracting a disease (p. 927). Scientists will target the genes within the animal and find another gene to replace with the mutated gene to solve any disease issues that an organism may face (Margawati, 2003, para.