In selecting target cells to receive a transferred gene in gene therapy, what factors do you think would have to be taken into account?

Short Writing Due 4/29/19: 2.5-3 pages, 12 point font, double-spaced, MLA citation style

Prompt: Within the context of Lindsay Ellis’s video essay, “Pocahontas was a mistake, Here is why?” discuss the ways in which contemporary cultural appropriation might be damaging to society.

Bio Prompt: 200 words min *Only use links provided*

Gene therapy has changed since the arrival of CRISPR (Links to an external site.), a novel and highly targeted gene editing tool that no longer requires the use of viral carriers. Combined with cloning, stem cell research and tissue engineering, the day of designer babies is not far away. In fact, it is a reality and we are having to discuss ethics in reproductive medicine anew. The technology in question are synthetic embryos (Links to an external site.) grown from stem cells entirely outside a woman’s womb, as explained by Carl Zimmer in the New York Times. John D. Aach and his colleagues explored the ethics of creating what they call “synthetic human entities with embryo-like features (Links to an external site.)” — Sheefs, for short. For now, the most advanced Sheefs are very simple assemblies of cells. Discuss how a combination of the gene editing tool CRISPR and stem cell based synthetic embryo technology will change the way we think about reproductive technologies and gene therapy.

Bio Prompt Peer Response: 100 words min 5/3/19

Bio Questions: 1-4 Due: 5/2/19

1. List the common infertility problems in women. What is the major infertility problem in men? Is it correctable?

2. Why should women consider collecting and freezing oocytes for use later in life when they want to have children? What are the risks associated with older women having children?

3. In selecting target cells to receive a transferred gene in gene therapy, what factors do you think would have to be taken into account?

4. A couple has a child with neurofibromatosis. They come to your genetic counseling office for help. After taking an extensive family history, you determine that there is no history of this disease on either side of the family. The couple wants to have another child and wants to be advised about the risks of that child having neurofibromatosis. What advice do you give them?