Our health is a huge part of our overall well-being. Good health means one less thing to worry about. But what if you were born with an incurable disease and you would have to live with it for the rest of your life? For example, say you were born with Sickle Cell Anemia, which, according to the National Heart, Lung, and Blood Institute , is an inherited gene disorder causing your red blood cells to be sickle-shaped instead of disc-shaped. These cells could potentially block blood flow in any part of the body and cause sudden attacks of severe pain. But there is no cure to end this. All one can do is to visit the doctor and prevent further complications. That's where gene editing or CRISPR comes in. It could cut a certain section of DNA where
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However, this ability brings up ethical and moral issues. How far should scientists go with this? To what extent can we use gene editing? It also has disadvantages. Aside from ethical concerns, CRISPR is not perfect and can seldom make mistakes and errors that could be detrimental, such as off-target sequences which occur when the guide RNA leads the enzyme Cas9 to the wrong sequence due to similarities in the code. Since we have so much DNA packed into our cells, there may be similar sequences somewhere, and the guide RNA could mistake one sequence for another. There is much to learn about our genetic code and modifying them could have unknown effects and risks.
In conclusion, despite concerns and risks, CRISPR has revolutionized our world with a brand new way of fighting diseases and illnesses, such as Sickle Cell Anemia, that threaten to end our lives. CRISPR also provides a new development in medicine and agriculture, bringing drugs that could treat mostly anything and food that are more plentiful, long lasting and are perfect in size and shape. This tool could change humanity for better or worse given the unlimited possibilities of such technology. Who doesn’t wish for a world without illness or disease? Or a possible cure to end all types of cancer once and for
However, this ability brings up ethical and moral issues. How far should scientists go with this? To what extent can we use gene editing? It also has disadvantages. Aside from ethical concerns, CRISPR is not perfect and can seldom make mistakes and errors that could be detrimental, such as off-target sequences which occur when the guide RNA leads the enzyme Cas9 to the wrong sequence due to similarities in the code. Since we have so much DNA packed into our cells, there may be similar sequences somewhere, and the guide RNA could mistake one sequence for another. There is much to learn about our genetic code and modifying them could have unknown effects and risks.
In conclusion, despite concerns and risks, CRISPR has revolutionized our world with a brand new way of fighting diseases and illnesses, such as Sickle Cell Anemia, that threaten to end our lives. CRISPR also provides a new development in medicine and agriculture, bringing drugs that could treat mostly anything and food that are more plentiful, long lasting and are perfect in size and shape. This tool could change humanity for better or worse given the unlimited possibilities of such technology. Who doesn’t wish for a world without illness or disease? Or a possible cure to end all types of cancer once and for