3. The knowledge and medical benefits of DNA research will be realized over time
ID: 255624 • Letter: 3
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3. The knowledge and medical benefits of DNA research will be realized over time in a series of steps. The first step is identifying genes responsible for genetic disorders. Additional research may eventually provide gene therapy treatments to cure genetic diseases. But genes will lead to the development of biochemical tests that will only allow people to determine if they have a specific defective gene. If your family history suggested that you might be at risk for carrying a gene for a lethal genetic disorder, such as Tay-Sachs disease or Huntington's disease, would you want to be tested to be certain of your genotype or not? If no, would you make the same decision if you were considering having children initially, identifying 4. The human genome project will eventually lead to the identification of many genes that have medical significance. People will undoubtedly benefit from this information because they will be able to determine if they possess any genetic predisposition to various illnesses and take appropriate preventative measures. However, genetic testing also raises questions about how genetic information should be used. In the future, there will be genetic screening tests available for a variety of genetic disorders allowing individuals to determine if they carry genes for heritable diseases. Genetic screening tests could then become part of someone's medical history. Should health insurance providers and/or employers have access to this information? Should people be systematically tested during childhood, or should testing be a matter of individual choice?Explanation / Answer
Tay Sachs disease is inherited from parents in a autosomal recessive manner. And Huntington's disease is caused by autosomal dominant mutation. If I may have a risk to bear such kind of gene because of my family history, I would definitely want to be tested to be certain of my genotype. And I would also like my partner to be tested for these genotypes, so that we can get the information whether our children will have the risk to have these diseases.
2. Systematic genetic screening should be done during childhood and it should be mandatory. Then everyone will know their health status and what they can do about it. Health insurance providers and employers should know about these medical history to provide better financial coverage for each individual.
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