LibGuides: Unit 2 Biology: Bioethics: Bioethical Issues

Prenatal Testing

Prenatal testing is used to confirm the diagnosis of a genetic disorder or chromosomal abnormality.

It is offered in high risk pregnancies, such as:

following a high risk prenatal screening test result
where parents already have a child with a genetic or chromosomal condition
if both parents are carriers of a particular condition
for women aged 35-37 years of age or over when your baby is due

[source]

Types of Prenatal Diagnostic Testing

Chorionic villus sampling (CVS)
What CVS is, what it can detect, and how it is performed.

Amniocentesis
What amniocentesis is, what it can detect and how it is performed.

Does genetic testing during pregnancy lead to more abortions?

Biopiracy of Indigenous Knowledges

[source]

Biopiracy: when indigenous knowledge is patented for profit
Often, in the search for new bioresources, researchers draw on local people’s traditional knowledge about the properties of a particular plant, animal or chemical compound. When researchers use traditional knowledge without permission, or exploit the cultures they’re drawing from – it’s called biopiracy.
Patents based on traditional knowledge are often ‘biopiracy’. A new international treaty will finally combat this
So-called “biopiracy”, in which companies lift ideas from traditional knowledge and patent them, is a significant problem. In one case a US company patented derivatives of the neem tree as pesticides, when the plant’s properties were already well known to local communities in India. There have also been attempts to patent traditionally cultivated plant varieties, such as basmati rice and jasmine rice.

Cloning

Cloning monkeys for research puts humans on a slippery ethical slope
It sounds like a good idea at face value – curing human disease is something most of us consider a priority. But there are some complex ethical issues at play here.
Cloning guided research topic Proquest - elibrary
Research guide From Proquest - eLibrary.
Cloning
Chapter 6 of the book "From Birth to Death and Bench to Clinic: The Hastings Center Bioethics Briefing Book."

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Scott, C.T. and Weissman, I.L. (2008). Cloning. In: M. Crowley, ed., From Birth to Death and Bench to Clinic: the Hastings Center Bioethics Briefing Book for Journalists, Policymakers, and Campaigns. [online] The Hastings Center, pp.25–30. Available at: https://www.thehastingscenter.org/wp-content/uploads/Cloning-BB6.pdf [Accessed 17 Sep. 2024].

Maintaining Genetic Diversity

[source]

Variety is the spice of life... and key to saving wildlife
Conservation genetics can boost a species’ ability to adapt and decrease its extinction risk by understanding how varied a species’ DNA is across its entire genome.
Preserving Genetic Diversity Gives Wild Populations Their Best Chance at Long-Term Survival
Researchers find that maintaining genetic variation is critical to allowing wild populations to survive, reproduce, and adapt to future environmental changes.

Biomimicry

Biomimethics: a critical perspective on the ethical implications of biomimetics in technological innovation
Outlines some of the moral, ethical, and legal challenges associated with biomimicry and biomimetics, particularly our motivations for pursuing these approaches, the valuation of nature within them, and regulations in the commercialization of biological knowledge.

Assisted Reproductive Technologies: IVF

in vitro fertilization (IVF), medical procedure in which mature egg cells are removed from a woman, fertilized with male sperm outside the body, and inserted into the uterus of the same or another woman for normal gestation.

[source: Britannica]

The ethics of IVF
Donate or discard? The surplus embryo debate
Article from the ABC exploring what happens to leftover embryos created during IVF treatment.

Pre-Implantation Genetic Diagnosis Fact Sheet
How PGD works, its advantages and disadvantages.

What is pre-implantation genetic testing (PGT)?
What PGT is, what it involves and what it can test for.
NOTE: This website is from an IVF clinic business and may contain positive biases.

Introduced Species

A strategy for dealing with invasive species in Australia: Invasive Species Council
The Invasive Species Council works on stopping new invasive species from entering the country and preventing the spread of those weeds and pests that have already established a foothold in Australia.
Australia State of the Environment Report 2021: Introduced and invasive species
The Environment Protection and Biodiversity Conservation Act 1999 (EPBC Act) legislates a review of the state of the Australian environment every 5 years. This report assesses the changing condition of our natural environment across 12 themes, including the impact of introduced and invasive species.

[source]

Introduced species are animals too: why the debate over compassionate conservation is worth having
Compassionate conservationists ask whether it’s ethical to harm and kill animals to preserve others. They believe ecosystems, species, and individual animals all have significant intrinsic value.

Unit 2 Biology: Bioethics: Bioethical Issues

Suggested Bioethical topics for investigation

Prenatal Testing

Biopiracy of Indigenous Knowledges

Cloning

Maintaining Genetic Diversity

Biomimicry

Assisted Reproductive Technologies: IVF

Introduced Species