“Will genetic engineering ever be a successful method in treating psychiatric
disorders?”
Name and surname: Kirsten Barbour
Grade: 12Y
Teacher: Mrs B. Eckersley
Date received: 14 February 2020
Due date: 16 March 2020
Contents:
1 Details, Contents and Introduction
Figure 1: (Glaser, 2012)
2 Genetic Engineering
. A highly controversial treatment alternative that is in the process of paving the medical
. field’s future.
3 Psychiatric Disorders
. Diseases of the mind, including depression and anxiety, are one of society’s most harmful
. illnesses, plaguing individuals from all spheres of life.
4 The Link
. Genetic engineering may be the key to unlocking a world free of all psychiatric disorders.
5 Possible outcomes and Issues
. This revolutionary field of study may be one of the most highly disputed treatments to ever
. exist.
6 Bibliography, Declaration of Authenticity, Plagiarism report and Marking rubric
Introduction:
The brain is the most complex organ in the human body. It produces our every thought, action,
memory, feeling and experience of the world. (Phillips, 2006) This organ is however, very
susceptible to multiple diseases and disorders such as depression, anxiety, OCD, etc. Each
presents themselves differently, but they are all generally characterized by a combination of
abnormal thoughts, perceptions, emotions, behavior and relationships with others. (Who.int, n.d.)
But what if this fatal flaw in humanity could disappear at the hands of genetic engineering? It
would be like taking off a car’s flat tire and replacing it with a new, safer and more modern tire,
allowing the car to function better and drive further than it could before. On the other hand,
replacing the old tire does have negative effects, such as a financial strain on the owner and an
unfavorable environmental effect.
The human brain is far more complex than a simple car tire, and genetic engineering far more
complicated than a wrench, but this new branch of medicine could be the new treatment to
widespread psychiatric disorders.
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, Genetic Engineering
What is genetic engineering?
Genetic engineering is the artificial manipulation, modification, and recombination of DNA or other nucleic
acid molecules in order to modify an organism or population of organisms. (Encyclopedia Britannica, n.d.)
This is done in an attempt to rid an organism or population of a disease-causing gene, or to add a
desirable trait that will be beneficial to people or to the organism itself.
As seen in Figure 2, shown alongside, there is a
genetically engineered salmon (top) and a natural salmon
of the same age (bottom). This clearly represents the
ability to engineer and precisely edit the genomes of
animals, thus altering their phenotype, benefitting the
human food supply.
Figure 2: A genetically engineered salmon, top, and
a natural salmon, bottom.
(Encyclopedia Britannica, n.d.)
Methods of genetic engineering in animals:
1. Recombinant DNA technology (Suter, 2013)
When molecules of DNA from two different organisms or species, are inserted into a host organism to
produce new genetic combinations that are of value to science, medicine, agriculture, and industry.
(Griffiths, 2020)
The process, as visually explained below in figure 3:
- DNA with a gene of interest, is removed from a donor cell.
- Restriction enzymes are used to break the H-bonds of the
. DNA strands at specific sites to isolate the gene of interest,
. leaving it with sticky ends.
- A plasmid is removed from a bacterial or fungi host, e.g.
. Escherichia coli (E. coli), using restriction enzymes, leaving it
. with sticky ends.
- The enzyme ligase is then used to join the piece of DNA
. carrying the gene of interest, into the bacterial plasmid to
. form recombinant DNA.
- The plasmid with its recombinant DNA, now acts as a vector
. and is re-entered into the host bacteria or fungi, which is now
. reprogramed according to the inserted gene.
- The bacteria or fungi are kept in tanks containing a nutrient
Figure 3: The process of forming
Recombinant DNA (Pham, 2018)
. medium with optimum conditions for rapid reproduction.
- This genetically modified organism may now produce a
. desired secretion, may be reentered into an organism or
. planted.
2. Gene Therapy (Suter, 2013)
An experimental technique that uses genes to treat or prevent disease, by replacing a faulty gene or
adding a new gene. In the future, this technique may allow doctors to treat a disorder by inserting a
gene into a patient’s cells instead of using drugs or surgery. (Genetics Home Reference, 2020)
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