• Question: Do you think that genetic modification is wrong as you are messing with nature?

    Asked by anusha to Chris, Kay, Kerstin, Lorna, Liv on 16 Mar 2010 in Categories: .
    • Photo: Kerstin Zechner

      Kerstin Zechner answered on 16 Mar 2010:

      Hey anusha! That’s a really cool question, and quite hard to answer. For certain reasons I think genetic modification is quite a good idea. If you can, for example, create a strain of wheat or corn that can grow during a drought, that would definitely help poorer countries. Also genetic modification is a large part of research and we do it to worms on a regular basis. On the other hand, in some countries like the US, some genetically modified wheat strains are taking over the natural strains. Personally, I agree with GM, but I think it should be strongly regulated in certain animals and in agriculture. What do you think? 🙂

    • Photo: Olivia Hibbitt

      Olivia Hibbitt answered on 16 Mar 2010:

      Hi anusha,
      The answer to your question depends on what kind of genetic modification you are doing. With gene therapy I am not modifying genes in people. I basically make a vector that contains a working copy of the gene (low density lipoprotein receptor) and deliver it to cells. In this way I am using a gene like you would use a drug. It get’s delivered so it can lower cholesterol.
      If you are talking about genetic modification in our food for example then I don’t agree that it is messing with nature. Everytime a cell divides, or reproduction occurs genetic modification takes place….is it that different that we are moving things around in a genome? Take a virus like HIV….it’s ‘natural’ but does all kinds of funny things to the genome….in fact the human genome is chock full of rubbish inserted by viruses over the millions of years of human evolution. I think humans taking information from one source and using it to make something better, help it feed people etc is not something that is bad or wrong.

    • Photo: Kay Penicud

      Kay Penicud answered on 16 Mar 2010:

      In humans I feel very uncomfortable with it, and would never personally work on it.

      In animals, for example mice or flies, its a little different. The animals are always lab animals so never allowed mix with wild animals so the animals found naturally are not affected.

      I also think GM animals in research have saved countless lives, so i think their use is justified

    • Photo: Lorna Houlihan

      Lorna Houlihan answered on 17 Mar 2010:

      No. I think that the big benefits are worth more than the small risk. I think of it as trying to improve it, for example if you want to grow your apples trees to have more apples, you treat your trees well, give them fertiliser etc. and this is a similar method. What do you think?

Comments

  • Photo: sesquipedalianist

    sesquipedalianist commented on :

    Altering genes is playing God, i think its right but wrong. You can make super crops and useful things but when it comes to Humans and animals bigger than a rat its wrong. We don’t know enough about it yet. I think that Glowing worms are pretty cool but thats as far as it should go.

    A Sesquipedalianist

  • Photo: anusha

    anusha commented on :

    I think that genetic modification has some advantages, like helping people in poorer countries and scientific research but from what I know it has a few disadvantages too. I’m not convinced it’s completely safe but I would definitely like to know more about GM and what else it can be used for in the future. 🙂