Build-A-Baby?

  Can creating the baby of your dreams be as simple as choosing the perfect designer handbag? In a way, science and technology are coming close. In recent years, many new genetically based medical procedures have been introduced to the world. These procedures were essentially created to help correct the “3500 different genetic diseases that have been linked to defective genes”. One of the most controversial has been that of InVitro Fertilization (IVF). Incidents involving IVF have become very prominent in the media and with that, many misconceptions have been made. The term “designer babies” has even been given to describe the outcome of the procedure. Although possible, at the moment, the result of a "designed baby" is only a bad ending to a current myth.

An IFV treatment in process

  IVF is performed to "reduce the chance that a child will be born with a genetic disorder". One can choose the type of sex and genes of the baby. In this method, a doctor would only fertilize sperm with a certain type of egg.Even though many people may assume differently, 'sex selection' is only permitted to avoid diseases that are sex-linked. The second method of IVF is referred to as PreImplantation Genetic Diagnosis or PGD. This method allows a doctor to remove a cell from the embryo and then test for genetic diseases. Only healthy embryos are re-enplanted back into the uterus. Although these procedures have been critiqued heavily, they offer opportunities to families who have not had them in the past.

A specialist performing an IVF procedure

Families with a long history of genetic diseases are the top beneficiaries of this modern baby making technology. One single cell can be the difference between a lifetime full of hardships  and one with joy and enjoyment. In Vancouver, British Colombia, Tanya and Chris Kirby underwent a traumatic experience when Chris suffered a heart attack.  Chris was born with hypertrophic cardiomyopathy, a genetically linked disease. When the couple wanted to start a family, they turned to IVF treatments and Tanya Kirby became pregnant with healthy twins. "If we can imagine getting rid of my condition or Huntington's." said Chris Kirby. The possibility of Chris’s disease being passed down was 1/2. These gene therapy methods have had amazing results and are very important to the livelihood of many families. But as the popularity of IVF and PGD has increased, so has the criticism.

These methods can be miracles for some but can be used unethically as well. In the United States, a deaf couple intentionally had a deaf child. By using the sperm of a man with "a long history of deafness" in the family, they were able to go through with this act. The gift of hearing was taken away from a child without proper reasoning. Incidents such as these begin to raise eyebrows. One of the most infamous situations involving IVF included Nadya Suleman, a California mother, with six children. She was en-planted with six embryos, with one splitting and creating twins. And thus, the "octomom" was born. Situations such as these turn IVF and PDG into something they are not.

The "Octomom" with all 14 of her children

Ultimately, IVF and PDG treamtments are still relatively new and there is still so much to discover. In fifteen years, we may be able to create our “dream baby”, but at the moment, the procedures we have in our grasp our doing more good than harm. Along with everything else touched by humanity, people will try to turn this into something for money and power. At the moment, an IVF treatment will cost aproxpamitley $30 000, which is much more than the average person can afford. All we can do as part of this ever changing world is try to educate our peers on the current misconceptions of gene therapy.     

Maybe someday!

References:

1)Bionet. "What is a designer baby?" Design-A-baby?2010. Bionet: explore life's sciences and debate the issues. 2002.

http://www.bionetonline.org/english/content/db_cont1.htm

2)Lee, Mi-Jung. "Screening could create designer babies."CTV News.2010.

http://www.ctvbc.ctv.ca/servlet/an/local/CTVNews/20101108/bc_ctv_investigates_making_babies_5_101108/20101116?hub=BritishColumbiaHome

3)Peller, Matt. "The Need to Regulate 'Designer Babies'."Scientific America. 2010

http://www.scientificamerican.com/article.cfm?id=regulate-designer-babies

4)BabyCentreUK. "Fertility Treatment: InVitro Fertlization(IVF)." Baby Centre.2010.

http://www.scientificamerican.com/article.cfm?id=regulate-designer-babies

Blogs I Commented On:

1)http://vanezzabioblog.blogspot.com/
2)http://haustriabio.blogspot.com/

The National Audubon Society

The Louisiana Coastal Initiative 

Throughout the world, numerous environmental societies and organizations strive to bring biodiversity to both our local and international ecosystems. As humans, we tend to focus on the negative aspects of our environmental situations. We are sometimes oblivious to those who work towards a better earth for future generations. The National Audubon Society’s mission is "To conserve and restore natural ecosystems, focusing on birds, other wildlife, and their habitats for the benefit of humanity and the earth's biological diversity". For more than a century, Audubon has been a role model in biologically diverse projects.

The official logo of the National Audubon Society

The National Audubon Society is one of the oldest, American, non-profit environmental organizations, being established in 1905. They use science, education, and policy knowledge to attack their various causes. From the protection of local habitats to researching climate change solutions, Audubon has used their many years of experience to help balance ecosystems throughout the globe. 

Audubon is a very substantial organization, delivering their conservation efforts from coast to coast. They have distributed their efforts in numerous ecosystems including Alaska, the Everglades and the Louisiana Coast. The Louisiana Coastal Initiative has been one of Audubon’s foremost conservations for over 75 years. In April 2010, the wetlands in the area were put under attack by the devastating BP Deepwater Horizon Disaster. Each year, more pollutants find their way into these waters, which strongly affects the biodiversity of our planet.

A large scale view of the Louisiana Coast

A photo of the April 2010 BP oil rig explosion

Louisiana's waterways (i.e. Mississippi River Delta) are needed for the survival of various ecosystems.  It supports over 100 million types of birds, 5 million of which come from Canada. These birds are all at major risk of oil consumption because they search for food in dangerous, oil polluted areas. These waterways are important to humans because of the many purposes they serve. 

Audubon is extremely committed to restoring the Louisiana Coast by working with  local chapters of the organization in Louisiana (Fundamental to Audubon’s "Important Bird Areas"). These habitats are critical to the survival of birds, other organisms, and ultimately humans.  The organization utilizes their volunteers to add efficiency to the BP oil cleanup. Audubon also works for the future, gathering data on the spill’s effects on birds to ensure a better restoration. Audubon has even become more public since the oil spill, with communications coordinator David Ringer speaking about the situation at the Springfield Conservation Nature Centre. He sent a message to the public a saying “Pretty quickly the interest in observing and enjoying turned to conserving and protection. You can’t just watch, you have to act.”

An Audubon volunteer feeding a pelican 

A Louisiana pelican suffering from the effects of the oil spill

The Louisiana Coast is one of the most recognized waterways in North America. The duty of Audubon lies in rebuilding a healthy Louisiana coast for our future ecosystems. The National Audubon Society has gone mainstream by partnering with consumer giant Pepsi, which has provided a $25 000 contribution to the organization to assist with oil spill efforts. Audubon is willing to fight for the restoration of these waterways so that they can thrive well into the future.

The National Audubon Society works toward a better future 

References

Handschuh, Judith. "Author Profile: Harper Lee". Teen Reads.com [underlined]. 2003. August 8, 2008 < http://www.teenreads.com/authors/au-lee-harper.asp>

 -  "Louisiana Coastal Initiative". Audubon.org. 2010. September 28, 2010.

http://conservation.audubon.org/louisiana-coastal-initiative

- "Audubon's Mississippi River Initiative: creating a sustainable vision for an iconic waterway". Louisiana Coast. Audubon. org. 2010. September 25, 2010.

http://louisianacoast.audubon.org/birds-science-education/mississippi-river-initiative/audubons-mississippi-river-initiative

- Bliss, Karen. "Oil spill focus of Audubon speech". News-Leader.com. 2010. September 27, 2010.

http://www.news-leader.com/article/20100921/NEWS01/9210351/1007/NEWS01/Oil-spill-focus-of-Audubon-speech

-O' Hanlon, Larry. "Millions of migrating birds headed to oil: The marshes, shores and islands of Gulf coast are a bottleneck for birds heading south". MSNBC.com. 2010. September 28, 2010.

http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/39068875/ns/technology_and_science-science/

-"The Brees Dream Foundation And Pepsi Beverages Company Announce A Grant Partnership Benefiting the Audubon Institute". New Orleans.com. 2010. September 25, 2010.

http://www.neworleans.com/news/local-news/474898.html

Comments:

1) http://vanezzabioblog.blogspot.com/

2)http://sbi3u1carminachu.blogspot.com/

Pictures:

Audubon Logo- http://www.google.ca/imgres?imgurl=http://www.thedailygreen.com/cm/thedailygreen/images/w5/audubon-logo-lg.jpg&imgrefurl=http://www.thedailygreen.com/environmental-news/latest/bird-gardens-47022602&usg=__Zsh4jV9OzDhiBPekEZrTsKASjVk=&h=360&w=460&sz=25&hl=en&start=0&zoom=1&tbnid=r8ya39YVyBUqEM:&tbnh=116&tbnw=147&prev=/images%3Fq%3Daudubon%2Bsociety%2Blogo%26um%3D1%26hl%3Den%26client%3Dsafari%26rls%3Den%26biw%3D1280%26bih%3D657%26tbs%3Disch:1&um=1&itbs=1&iact=hc&vpx=115&vpy=66&dur=978&hovh=199&hovw=254&tx=168&ty=103&ei=nXmiTOCfB4LOswbbgKmLBQ&oei=nXmiTOCfB4LOswbbgKmLBQ&esq=1&page=1&ndsp=28&ved=1t:429,r:0,s:0

Louisiana coast- http://www.google.ca/imgres?imgurl=http://aquadoc.typepad.com/photos/uncategorized/2007/06/13/800pxatchafalaya_river_delta.jpg&imgrefurl=http://aquadoc.typepad.com/waterwired/2007/06/index.html&usg=__PM_dAH50beI2cOmkeTcncKynEXY=&h=534&w=800&sz=67&hl=en&start=28&zoom=1&tbnid=HhxNeXo_zy_ndM:&tbnh=148&tbnw=211&prev=/images%3Fq%3Dlouisiana%2Bcoast%26um%3D1%26hl%3Den%26client%3Dsafari%26sa%3DN%26rls%3Den%26biw%3D1280%26bih%3D657%26tbs%3Disch:10%2C200&um=1&itbs=1&iact=rc&dur=450&ei=EHqiTLGCF4P68AbGptzxBA&oei=DHqiTPm8NsyBswbMp-CKBQ&esq=2&page=2&ndsp=17&ved=1t:429,r:0,s:28&tx=166&ty=29&biw=1280&bih=657

Explosion- http://www.google.ca/imgres?imgurl=http://breakingalerts.net/wp-content/uploads/2010/09/Oil-Rig-Explosion.jpg&imgrefurl=http://breakingalerts.net/09/oil-rig-explosion.html&usg=__BS7Zc2A75-FGD1G5Jm8ccqNoCaE=&h=400&w=620&sz=38&hl=en&start=0&zoom=1&tbnid=ivtABljAuZ8qoM:&tbnh=123&tbnw=179&prev=/images%3Fq%3Doil%2Brig%2Bexplosion%2B2010%26um%3D1%26hl%3Den%26client%3Dsafari%26sa%3DN%26rls%3Den%26biw%3D1280%26bih%3D657%26tbs%3Disch:1&um=1&itbs=1&iact=hc&vpx=641&vpy=79&dur=314&hovh=180&hovw=280&tx=147&ty=115&ei=S3qiTM2VO4qFswbP9bWKBQ&oei=S3qiTM2VO4qFswbP9bWKBQ&esq=1&page=1&ndsp=26&ved=1t:429,r:3,s:0

Audubon volunteer- http://louisianacoast.audubon.org/birds-science-education/mississippi-river-initiative/audubons-mississippi-river-initiative

pelican- http://www.google.ca/imgres?imgurl=http://www.ottawacitizen.com/3122123.bin%3Fsize%3D620x400&imgrefurl=http://www.ottawacitizen.com/Gallery%2Bspill%2Bcleanup/3112830/story.html&usg=__qWl89F4Ut_lhCqa1ZliNU0vZlZ8=&h=400&w=620&sz=38&hl=en&start=0&zoom=1&tbnid=zGcq3x8dW9SjcM:&tbnh=105&tbnw=163&prev=/images%3Fq%3Dpelican%2Bin%2Blouisiana%2Boil%2Bspill%26um%3D1%26hl%3Den%26client%3Dsafari%26rls%3Den%26biw%3D1280%26bih%3D657%26tbs%3Disch:1&um=1&itbs=1&iact=rc&dur=374&ei=7nqiTO2MAsSOswbl37GKBQ&oei=7nqiTO2MAsSOswbl37GKBQ&esq=1&page=1&ndsp=26&ved=1t:429,r:15,s:0&tx=81&ty=53

birds- http://conservation.audubon.org/louisiana-coastal-initiative