Babies could be tested for 3,500 genetic faults

Telegraph, UK ^ | June 6, 2012 | Stephen Adams, Medical Correspondent

[yorkie]

A team has been able to predict the whole genetic code of a foetus by taking a blood sample from a woman who was 18 weeks pregnant, and a swab of saliva from the father.

They believe that, in time, the test will become widely available, enabling doctors to screen unborn babies for some 3,500 genetic disorders.

At the moment the only genetic disorder routinely tested for on the NHS is Down’s syndrome.

[dfwgator]

What could possibly go wrong?

[Rumplemeyer]

If they have the ability to find the gentic “defects” could they also fix them before the child is born?

[yorkie]

At the beginning of the article...."Scientists could soon be able to routinely screen unborn babies for thousands of genetic conditions, raising concerns the breakthrough could lead to more abortions."

And, now Planned Parenthood is opening up a clinic at Roosevelt High School in Los Angeles, CA.

Planned Parenthood opens clinic in LA High School (click here)

[huldah1776]

it would be so much easier to just outlaw pre-born genocide and use this information for cures.

[mountainlion]

If only we could check our elected officials for ethical defects.

[KC_Lion]

What could Possibly Go Wrong!!?!

[Born to Conserve]

“Predict” the genes of an 18 week old fetus?

Interesting, self serving language.

[laweeks]

Wow! We could have tons and tons and tons of abortions if we find any defects! Awesome! What a great country we’re turning in to! And we’ll fund all those abortions with tax dollars. What a great country!

[Chode]

[KC_Lion]

Belonged to a new underclass, no longer determined by social status or the color of your skin. No, we now have discrimination down to a science.

[Talisker]

...in time, the test will become widely available, enabling doctors to screen unborn babies for some 3,500 genetic disorders. At the moment the only genetic disorder routinely tested for on the NHS is Down’s syndrome.

Let's see, currently the liberals want to automatically murder Down's syndrome kids. NOW they can test for 3,499 OTHER reasons to murder children.

They must be drooling with anticipation.

Science + Liberals = Death

[Chode]

bingo...

[HiTech RedNeck]

This is a genie that’s going to be hard to keep in the bottle, since the technology is easy even for non first world countries now. Still, why did the NHS have to take this over, too? Can’t ANYTHING be private in Britain?

Another thing that probably won’t be discussed is how sure can they be that the genetic marker being looked for means the disease is present. In some cases it would be 100%, but in other cases (e.g. proclivity to cardiovascular disease) there are a host of other factors.

[Myrddin]

The initial genetic configuration is only a start. Many changes will occur during development that alter the final result. Nutrition, maternal hormones, maternal disease and exposure to toxic substances will result in something different that what the initial configuration would "predict". Consider every Windows or Linux installation DVD as the starting material. The hardware and exposure to operating will change the running system over time. It is preposterous to claim that you can definitively claim the genetic markers you identify will be expressed in the end product.

[HiTech RedNeck]

Genes are, pardon the term, viral. They go to every cell. Nobody knows how to roll them back on a bodywide basis, like patching a Windows or Linux installation. The only real scientific issue is whether the sought marker shows up as a diseased phenotype in all cases or only some.

[Clump]

I have a 7 month old with Downs Syndrome.
We told the Dr. at the “high risk pregnancy clinic” to stop picking our baby apart during the sonogram. If there was something we could do to have a safe delivery or specialized care after birth then great.
When he started in on the “options” I interrupted him and said “doc, we are gong to love this baby until the day we die or until the day he dies, but we will never consider murdering him.”
That seemed to shut him up pretty fast.
At the time we didn’t know he had Downs and the idea was a little scary.
We found out when he was born in the wee hours of the morning.
By the time we got a few hours sleep we were up and in love with him and excited.
He is our third child, and they are all wonderful.
It’s too bad there’s no test to show new parents what a joy the child is going to be. If there was then he would have been off the charts in that department.
His name is Reagan, and he really makes life worth living.
He is so happy and he brings joy everywhere we go.

[exDemMom]

Unfortunately, with most genetic disorders, it’s not a certainty that the child will develop the disorder. Most genetic defects only cause a susceptibility to the disorder; whether the disorder manifests or not is a result of environmental factors.

Testing for 3,500 genetic disorders will almost certainly find at least one disorder in every baby. Everyone carries at least one genetic defect that will only manifest if they have children with another person having the exact same mutation. There’s a reason we avoid inbreeding—breeding with close relatives who are highly likely to carry the same mutant genes you have is a great way to get kids who get a double dose of those genes.

[NonValueAdded]

Wasn’t this Hitler’s aim, the master race?

[Myrddin]

As cells differentiate, some DNA is activated, some DNA is deactivated and in some cases some DNA is discarded entirely. The path of the differentiation can be altered by the environment as time progresses. It's an empirical process, not a defined process. Bio-software in operation. The authors of the article err in the assumption of a defined process constrained entirely by the initial state.