1. Should parents be able to make the decision to
prenatally modify the DNA of their child?
The Legality of Prenatal Modification

2. Introduction

3. Thesis/Hypothesis
Prenatal genetic modification of fetuses to prevent disease should not only
be legal, it should be morally obligatory. Prenatal genetic modification of
fetuses to alter the personality or physical attributes of the child should be
allowed completely as long as the result is undistinguishable from other
humans aside from eye color, hair color, and related things. Personality
modification should be allowed only to remove disorders such as ADD and
ADHD.

4. Background

5. Definitions
Prenatal: “A descriptive term for the period between conception and
birth” (“prenatal”)
DNA: “Genetics. deoxyribonucleic acid: an extremely long macromolecule that is the
main component of chromosomes and is the material that transfers genetic
characteristics in all life forms, constructed of two nucleotide strands coiled around
each other in a ladderlike arrangement with the sidepieces composed of alternating
phosphate and deoxyribose units and the rungs composed of the purine and
pyrimidine bases adenine, guanine, cytosine, and thymine: the genetic information of
DNA is encoded in the sequence of the bases and is transcribed as the strands unwind
and replicate.” (“DNA”)
Fetus: “In humans, the unborn young from the end of the eighth week after
conception to the moment of birth, as distinguished from the earlier
embryo.” (“fetus”)
Modify: “to change somewhat the form or qualities of; alter partially; amend: to modify
a contract.” (“modify”)

6. Genetics: Biology. the science of heredity, dealing with resemblances and
differences of related organisms resulting from the interaction of their
genes and the environment. (“genetics”)
Recombinant DNA: DNA in which one or more segments or genes have been
inserted, either naturally or by laboratory manipulation, from a different
molecule or from another part of the same molecule, resulting in a new
genetic combination. (“Recombinant DNA”)
6

7. History
In the current medical world, curing genetic diseases is nearly impossible.

8. Data

9. Perspective One:

10. Perspective Two:

11. Synthesis

13. Conclusions

14. What Should We Do?

15. Notes

16. Unanswered Questions

17. Sources

18. Works Cited
Agar, Nicholas. “Designer Babies: Ethical Considerations.”
actionbioscience.org. ActionBioscience.org, April 2006. Web. 31
Jan. 2010.
Anderson, Kerby. “Genetic Engineering.” leaderu.com. ULeadership,
n.d. Web. 31 Jan. 2010.
“Audrey R. Chapman, Ph.D., M. Div., S.T.M.” commed.uchc.edu.
UConn Health Center, n.d. Web. 5 Feb. 2010.
Chapman, Audrey R., and Mark S. Frankel, eds. Designing Our
Descendants: The Promises and perils of Genetic Modifications.
Baltimore, MD: The John Hopkins University Press, 2003.
Sandel, Michael J. The Case Against Perfection: Ethics in the Age of
Genetic Engineering. Cambridge ,MA: Belknap Press of Harvard
University Press, 2009.
Stein, Rob. “Fresh Hopes and Concerns as Fetal DNA Tests Advance.”
Washington Post. Washington Post, 26 August 2008. Web. 8 Aug.
2009.

19. "prenatal." The American Heritage® New Dictionary of Cultural Literacy, Third Edition.
Houghton Mifflin Company, 2005. 08 Feb. 2010. <http://
dictionary.reference.com/browse/prenatal>.
"DNA." Dictionary.com Unabridged. Random House, Inc. 08 Feb. 2010. <http://
dictionary.reference.com/browse/DNA>.
"fetus." The American Heritage® Dictionary of the English Language, Fourth Edition.
Houghton Mifflin Company, 2004. 08 Feb. 2010. <http://
dictionary.reference.com/browse/fetus>.
"modify." Dictionary.com Unabridged. Random House, Inc. 08 Feb. 2010. <http://
dictionary.reference.com/browse/modify>.
"recombinant dna." Dictionary.com Unabridged. Random House, Inc. 08 Feb.
2010. < http://dictionary.reference.com/browse/recombinant dna>.
19

20. Author Mini-Biographies

21. Audrey R. Chapman
Dr. Chapman got her Ph.D. (Doctor of Philosophy) at Columbia
University, her M. Div. (Master if Divinity) at New York Theological
Seminary, and an S.T.M. (Master of Sacred Theology) at Union
Theological Seminary. “Dr. Chapman began her professional
career as a faculty member in the Political Science Department at
Barnard College,” (“Audrey R. Chapman, Ph.D., M. Div., S.T.M.”
1) after which she worked in Ghana, Lebanon, and Kenya. She
then spent 15 years in high positions within the American
Association for the Advancement of Science. She has written or
edited eighteen books and countless articles. Currently, she
teaches “courses dealing with the ethical and policy dimensions
of stem cell research, health and human rights, spirituality and
medicine, and the challenges of end of life care” (“Audrey R.
Chapman, Ph.D., M. Div., S.T.M.” 4) at the University of
Connecticut School of Medicine.

22. Mark S. Frankel
Mark S. Frankel, Ph. D. earned his B.A. from Emory University in political
science and at George Washington University, he earned his Ph. D. in political
science, focusing on science policy. His feild is based upon the legality and
ethics of biomedical research. He is the directior of the Scientific Freedom,
Responsibility and Law Program at the American Association for the Advancement of
Science, and he has supervised the writing of multiple books.

23. Michael J. Sandel
Michael J. Sandel earned his doctorate at Oxford University and is
the professor of government at Harvard University. He has
written a multitude of books about ethics related to laws and
justice that have been translated into ten different languages. He
received the Harvard-Radcliffe Phi Beta Kappa teaching prize and
later became a professor at Harvard in 1999. Sandel has also
held many lectures all over the world.

24. Kerby Anderson
Kerby Anderson has writted several books, including Genetic
Engineering, Living Ethically in the 90s, and Moral Dilemmas. He
has also been on several radio talk shows and is the national
director of Probe Ministries International, a foundation dedicated to
spreading the Christian faith.

25. Nicholas Agar
Nicholas Agar has been a professor of ethics at VUW
(Victoria University of Wellington) since 1996. He got is
masters degree at VUW and went to the Australian
National University for his Ph. D. He has written several
books and essays. He mainly researches new genetics
and ethics.