Related Experiment Video
Updated: May 24, 2026
07:34
FISH for Pre-implantation Genetic Diagnosis
Published on: February 23, 2011
Toward an ethical eugenics: the case for mandatory preimplantation genetic selection
1Mount Sinai School of Medicine, New York, New York 10027, USA. jacobmappel@gmail.com
JONA'S Healthcare Law, Ethics and Regulation
|February 28, 2012
Summary
Preimplantation genetic diagnosis can screen embryos for severe disabilities. This technology may ethically obligate parents to prevent suffering in potential children under specific circumstances.
Area of Science:
- Medical Ethics
- Reproductive Technologies
- Genetics
Background:
- Preimplantation genetic diagnosis (PGD) allows for the screening of embryos before implantation.
- This technology can identify embryos with severe, life-threatening genetic conditions.
Purpose of the Study:
- To explore the ethical implications of using PGD to screen and terminate embryos with severe disabilities.
- To argue for the ethical imperative of utilizing PGD under specific conditions.
Main Methods:
- Philosophical argument and ethical analysis.
- Review of existing literature on PGD and reproductive ethics.
Main Results:
- The article posits that PGD is not only a desirable option but potentially an ethical duty for prospective parents.
- Under certain conditions, selecting against embryos with severe disabilities can be ethically required to reduce suffering.
Conclusions:
- The ethical use of PGD for severe disabilities is supported under specific circumstances.
- Parents may have a duty to prevent the birth of a child with a severe, life-threatening condition through PGD.
Related Concept Videos
02:46Genetic Screens
Genetic screens are tools used to identify genes and mutations responsible for phenotypes of interest. Genetic screens help identify individuals or a group of people at risk of developing genetic diseases and help them with early intervention, targeted therapy, and reproductive options.
Forward genetic screens
Forward or “classical” genetic screens involve creating random mutations in an organism’s DNA using radiation, mutagens, or insertion of additional bases, which result in visible changes...
Forward genetic screens
Forward or “classical” genetic screens involve creating random mutations in an organism’s DNA using radiation, mutagens, or insertion of additional bases, which result in visible changes...
01:59CRISPR
Genome editing technologies allow scientists to modify an organism’s DNA via the addition, removal, or rearrangement of genetic material at specific genomic locations. These types of techniques could potentially be used to cure genetic disorders such as hemophilia and sickle cell anemia. One popular and widely used DNA-editing research tool that could lead to safe and effective cures for genetic disorders is the CRISPR-Cas9 system. CRISPR-Cas9 stands for Clustered Regularly Interspaced Short...
00:49What is Genetic Engineering?
Overview
01:06Natural Selection and Mating Preferences
The principle of natural selection posits that organisms better adapted to their environment are more likely to survive and reproduce. This principle is closely intertwined with mating preferences, a key aspect of sexual selection, which evolutionary psychologists believe is driven by instincts to propagate one's genes. Such instincts significantly influence mating behaviors and preferences between genders.
Females, due to their biological roles in conception, pregnancy, and nursing, inherently...
Females, due to their biological roles in conception, pregnancy, and nursing, inherently...
01:16In-vitro Mutagenesis
To learn more about the function of a gene, researchers can observe what happens when the gene is inactivated or “knocked out,” by creating genetically engineered knockout animals. Knockout mice have been particularly useful as models for human diseases such as cancer, Parkinson’s disease, and diabetes.
02:30Genomic Imprinting and Inheritance
Diploid organisms inherit genetic material through chromosomes from both parents. Copies of the same gene are known as alleles. In most cases, both alleles are simultaneously expressed and allow various cellular processes to function optimally. If one of the alleles is missing or mutated, the expression of the other allele can compensate; however, this is not true for all genes.
The expression of some genes depends on which parent passed the gene to the offspring, through a phenomenon known as...
The expression of some genes depends on which parent passed the gene to the offspring, through a phenomenon known as...