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P4 - Report on Moral and Ethical issues related to scientific development
Scientific development
Benefits
1
Animal testing
Animals are used to develop
medical treatments, determine the
toxicity of medications, check the
safety of products destined for
human use, and other biomedical,
commercial, and healthcare uses.
Animals themselves benefit from
the results of animal testing. if
vaccines were not tested on
animals, millions of animals would
have died from diseases.
2
Using children in research clinical
trials
Clinical trials are conducted in the
hopes of finding new, more
effective treatments to give
children better quality of life and
they're often very promising.
Some clinical trials test the effects of
potential new drugs, therapies,
vaccines, vitamins, or procedures.
These types of trials, called
randomized, controlled clinical trials,
try to find the best treatment with the
fewest side effects. They begin only
after preliminary research has been
conducted and there is reason to
believe that a potential new
treatment is effective.
All clinical trials are voluntary and
information collected during them is
confidential. Participants can
withdraw from a trial at any time, for
any reason.
Moral and Ethical issues
Lot of debate is being going on
whether using animals in research
is’’ right or wrong?’’. This is
because animals are kept in
captivity or killed after their use.
It is considered to be ethical as
It helps researchers to find drugs
some religious treat animals to be
and treatments to improve health sacred. Some people don't
and medicine. E.g. vaccines,
support animal testing for
antibiotics, insulin.
cosmetic use but they support its
use in developments of new drugs
Alternative methods of testing do and medicine.
not stimulate humans in the same Some substances tested on
way. Animals are considered to be animals sometimes never receive
similar to humans. This helps
approval of public consumption.
researchers I recognising
Many view this as a major
limitations to improve medicines. negative.
This helps to ensure safety of
drugs before using on humans.
This gives many families get a
deep sense of satisfaction from
the knowledge that their child is
contributing to the development
of better treatments for his or her
illness.
Using children in clinical trials raise
ethical issues whether it is safe to use
children in research. This is because
the new drugs, therapies, or
treatments used in a trial might not
be as effective as current treatment
options or may not work at all.
There is also a risk of potential side
effects, all of which may or may not
be known at the time of the trial. This
could lead to complications or affect
the child's health.
It also disturbs child’s day to day
activities due frequent visit to the
clinic for monitoring.
3
Genetically Modified Crops
GM crops are plants used in
agriculture, the DNA of which has
been modified using genetic
engineering techniques. In most
cases the aim is to introduce a new
trait to the plant which does not
occur naturally in the species.
There is broad scientific consensus
that food on the market derived
from GM crops poses no greater
risk to human health than
conventional food. GM crops also
provide a number of ecological
benefits.
By producing and yielding GM
crops, the growth and quick
availability of it can feed the
worlds huge increasing population
in the coming decades.
A key ethical concern about GM
foods is safe to be eaten. As it
have a potential to trigger
allergies or disease in humans.
There is also the fear that new
allergies could occur from the
mixing of genes from two
organisms.
It concludes in relation to the
issue of 'unnaturalness' that GM
modification does not differ to
such an extent from conventional
breeding that it is in itself morally
objectionable.
Groups such as Greenpeace and
the World Wildlife Fund have
concerns that risks of GM food
have not been adequately
identified and managed, and have
questioned the objectivity of
regulatory authorities.
4
Embryonic stem cells
Embryonic stem are derived from
embryos that develop from eggs
that have been fertilized in vitro—
vitro fertilization clinic—and then
donated for research purposes
with informed consent of the
donors. They are not derived from
eggs fertilized in a woman's body.
Use of this method is termed as a
major ethical moral issue in the
society.
Embryonic stem cells are thought
to be potential cures for spinal
cord, Parkinson’s disease,
diabetes, cancer etc.
This is one of the most talked
topics of today. One of the moral
issues is that some people believe
that destruction of fertilized
human egg to be the murder of
It helps researchers and scientist
human life. Because they believe
to understand the development of human life begins at conception
human tissues and organs and the and destruction of pre-born life is
growth and treatment of diseases. morally unacceptable.
Hence, it is regarded as the
Some believe insufficient
greatest potential to cure human attention is given to explore the
suffering since the advent of
potential of adult stem cells as it
antibiotics.
already has been successfully cure
many diseases. some also argue
To create children with process of that too little attention is paid to
Cloning will help parents with
umbilical cord blood for stem cell
difficulty in conceiving as this
research and that no cures haven
enable them to create children
been yet produced by embryonic
with genetically related.
stem cell therapy.
5
Cloning
Human cloning is the creation of a
genetically identical copy of a
human. The term is generally used
to refer to artificial human cloning,
which is the reproduction of
human cells and tissue
Cloning will help parents with
difficulty in conceiving as this
enable them to create children
with genetically related.
The possibility of human cloning
has raised controversies. These
ethical concerns have prompted
several nations to pass laws
regarding human cloning and its
legality.
Organisms could be cloned with
the desired traits for research
purpose specifically as this will
help to reduce ethical issues and
other cons of using animals in
research.
Endangered species can be saved
from extinction by cloning.
Cloning could lower healing and
recovery after traumatic injury
with their own cells faster and
easier without complications.
While cloning body organs is a
great asset to extending human
life, it could also cause a lot of
malpractice. This is because the
ability to clone desired traits,
there could be the possibility of
people deliberately reproducing
undesired traits. This could lead to
a rise in malpractices within
society.
Being a process of creating
identical genes, there would be a
lack of diversity in humankind.
Scientists believe this lack of
diversity will lower the human
race’s ability to adapt. This is
negative feedback for future
research. Hence, some scientists
are against this idea.
References – all accessed on November 31, 2014
1. http://www.aboutanimaltesting.co.uk/using-animals-testing-pros-versus-cons.html
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Animal_testing
2. http://kidshealth.org/parent/system/ill/clinical_trials.html#a_Weighing_Pros_and_Cons
3. http://www.geneticallymodifiedfoods.co.uk/ethical-concerns-gm-foods.html
4. http://usliberals.about.com/od/stemcellresearch/i/StemCell1_2.htm
5. https://www.udemy.com/blog/pros-and-cons-of-cloning/
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tionalAppliedScience/Samples/StudentBook/BTECLevel3NationalAppliedScienceStudentBookUnit5.pdf