genetic data and the public domain Flashcards
history of eugenics
phenotypic selection through infanticide
sparta- elders judged babies when presented by their fathers, weak or undesirable babies were abandoned
rome- earliest attempt by the romans to create code of law- laws stated that deformed children would be put to death
negative eugenics- removing certain people + their lineage from society
platos the republic
proposed the establishment of a fixed lottery in which each person was assigned a marriage number corresponding to a quantitiative assessment of their fitness
he believed this system would lead to a predicatble improvement of human race
charles darwin
said ‘if the prudent avoid marraige whilst the reckless marry, the inferior members tend to supplant the better members of society’
built on ideas of darwin’s natural selection- survival of the fittest
eugenics defined
from the greek word eugenes- good birth
aligned to the science of heredity
refers to the belief and practices of improving the quality of population
social philosophy advocating the improvement of human genetic traits through the reproduction of people with desired traits (positive) and reduced of those with less desired traits (negative)
has biological and scientific roots but impacts society, economics, politics and culture
francis galton
looked at factors contributing to height
nature vs nurture
nature- all that an individual brings with them into the world
nurture- every influence from without that affects them after birth
institution of genetics
1904- eugenics record office established in UCL
francis galton researched into biometrics
1907- eugenics education society founded- education and popularisation of eugenics
society asked to provide evidence for govt royal commisions eg on the care and control of the feebleminded
membership of society never large but had wider influence globally eg advised the govt
popularisation of genetic science
science is valued by society as the application of scientific knowledge that helps to satisfy many basic human needs and improve living standards
eugenics societies were created globally
genetically selected traits
pauperism, feeble mindedness, alcoholism due to defective germ plasm
defective individuals should not reproduce- compulsory sterilisation
some races more prone to defects so had selective immigration restriction
eugenics movement
1900-1940- >30 counties had their own versions
use of rational science to improve- considered politically progressive
organisations of social reformed and scientists (geneticists, doctors)
science of human heredity at the time
rise of eugenics
1910 eugenics record office
to sterilise hereditary defectives and restirct inflow of worthless immigrants
1920s - american eugenics society sponsored fitter families contests
based on application and testing- prize winning families won fame and a medal
eugenics US
30 states adopted legislation to perform forced sterilisation on those deemed mentally unfot
feebleminded- social undesirbale traits + social control, alchoholism, sexuality + criminality
60,000 legally sterilised 1907-1970
eugenics was a popularist movement
nazi germans
taken up by nazis and used in nazi propaganda
perfect bodies, aryan race, wealth and morals
most extreme during 1933-45
forced sterilisation laws for herditary defectives (400000+)
killing programmes (euthanasia) - 200,000 adults and children with disabilities, final solution against jewish people
practiced positive and negative eugenics
end of eugenics
decline of eugenics after WWII - continued to influence social work
idea of probelm family prevails to today in different forms
practical problems of eugenics
genetic info
NHS england
newborn blood spot (nbs) screening programme
UK national screening committee
screens for 9 genetic diseases
genomic sequencing
can sequence a whole genome
once genome is sequenced can also edit genome
pre implantation genetic diagnosis (PGD)
during IVF can extract DNA and test for genetic diseases
can test over 600 genetic diseases
questions over what genetic disorders to test
genome editing tools
genome editing may be seen as eugenic tool
zinc finger nucleases (ZFNs)
meganucleases
TAL effector nucleasors (TALENs)
clustered regulalry interspaced short palindromic repeats (CRISP, crispcas9)
CRISP cas 9
genome editing
facilitates knockout or knock in of mutations by introducing a double strand break at a desired site in genome
dramatically increases the effeciciency of mutagenesis
can be in vitro or in vivo
cell has 2 methods to repair DSBs:
- non homologous end joining (NHEJ)- brings 2 free ends together and rejoins them (error prone)
- homology directed repair (HDR)- uses sister chromatid as a template to replace the area of the break for homologous recombination
dna predictions
dna may have predictions about you but future cannot be predicted with certainty
- Even for a disease like cystic fibrosis that is caused by variamts in a single gene, the severity of symptoms can vay between individuals who have the same version of the CTFR gene, due to additional genetic and environmental factors
- In some cases, DNA may suggest a strong risk of disease but as new risk factors are found, these numbers might change
- Knowing you are at an increased risk for a disease may influence your choices, especially if lifestyle changes can prevent the disease
