Genetics Project Part 1

Cornelius Chavis

Debate

When Diagonosing a Fetus Also Diagnoses a Parent: Hunting Disease (Cons)

• In 1993, direct testing for the mutation became possible with the discovery of Huntington's Disease (HD) gene on It encodes a protein called hunting tin that, when mutant, contains a stretch of extra amino acids that causes it to misfold and form clumps in certain brain cells.
  
• One study found out that from 10 to 20 percent of individuals are at risk of offering the gene test , and actually taking months after genetic counseling.
  
• Clinicians fear that giving this bad news to their patients, will make them go suicidal.


• There is no cure for the Huntington's disease.


• The Huntington's disease ids complex due to the fact that its symptoms will affect an individual until about 38 to 40 years.
  
• The Huntington's disease symptoms are clumsiness and slurred speech progress to a near-constant writhing repetitive,ceasing only during sleep, and dance-like movements.
  
• People who are typically living with the disease will die of infection in 15 to 20 years. Some people become demented; and others remain aware.
• Huntington's disease is autosomal dominant, so each off-spring of an affected individual has a 50 percent chance of inheriting the disease.
• Before diagnosis, the child of an affected parent, or the sibling of an affected individual, is said to be at risk.

Example: A young man ended up committing some very risky stunts such as gambling, skydiving, hang gliding, and bungee jumping. When he was tested he ended up having the vasectomy instead of the mutation.

Example 2: There was a guy named Peter, age 24 who's 45-year-old mother Huntington's disease and was adopted, so his mother didn't know about her family history. Now Peter and his wife Martha are having a baby, but they worry if their baby would catch the disease. The clinicians decide to test Peter to see if he had the disease and then Martha, if she want to because it her body. Unfortunately, their questioning giving this test, because Peter could become suicidal to the results and Martha could reach a new level of being worried.

Reflection: If I made a choice on whether to be for or against the use of testing infants for Huntington's disease, I would be against it. The thought of testing a new born infant who just entered the world may be a bit risky, because they might be a bit sensitive towards the process given. Also, it is a human's life and they have a choice to either get tested or not, because if their told that they have the disease and end up later not having it, the results could emotionally sprain a human. I had a debate with my oppenent Arie, who had a lot of good points to test the infants, but I had a roll in my presentation that kept it reflecting to life. Overall we had a great debate and I feel that Arie's presentation was more informational and complex to the public, while mine was more social and realistic to the public.