This is my dad
This is my mom
And this is me ...
But why is it that I'm dark? Why don't I have blue eyes or freckles?
In 1866, Gregor Mandel, an Australian monk
 
known as the father of modern genetics through his  work on pea plants discovered
the fundamental laws of inheritance, he deduced that genes come in pairs
and are inherited as distinct units, one from each parent
Mendel tracked the segregation of parental genes and their appearance
their appearance in the offsprings
as dominant or recessive traits
Which means that some genes we inherit from our parents  are dominant
and some don't appear in us at all but can still appear in later generations
Now, think of DNA as the instructional manual of every living thing
which detects certain characteristics like the color of your hair and how you walk
 
But sometimes, during the process of transferring genes from our parents to us
errors(buzzer) occur which create problems in our instructional material
Faulty genes can cause major health problems
Like Cystic Fibrosis
Sickle Cell Anaemia
Colour Blindness
Diabetes
Autism and more ...
Which brings us to the topic for today
Genetic Editing
So what in the world is gene editing?
(Whoosh)
Genetic Editing is the process of altering the genetic code
of one  or more organisms to produce desired traits
For example, In 2015 ... Doctors used genetic editing techniques
to cure a baby girl's leukemia
 
 
Now how exactly does genetic editing work?
Well, it's quite simple and you don't have to be a biologist to understand it
Woah! Woah! Woah!
 
It simply works using a method known as CRISPR
Think of CRISPR as a molecular pair of sharpshooting scissors assassin
It's a piece of RNA(Ribonucleic acid) that acts  as a guidance system and an enzyme in the cell's nucleus
 
CRISPR's guidance system hunts for a specific DNA sequence like a problematic gene
When CRISPR finds its target, it clamps onto that DNA and slices it
When the cell tries to repair  the damage, it uses an engineered healthy part of the gene to fix it
Wait ...Since we  can alter genes  to cure diseases, we could alter genes to get my dream child
But too bad it's just futuristic
Wait, what if it's not? In the year 2000, Adam Nash became the first genetically engineered baby
 
There are three methods by which this is done
Pre Implantation Genetic Diagnosis
TALENS(Transcription Activator-like Effector Nuclease)
And CRISPR
Eggs can be screened  for gender, Appearance, Intelligence, Diseases, and Personality
Hence, the almighty 'Designer Baby'
With it's younger cousin,'The Three-Person Baby'
This is a procedure by which a baby has three genetic  parents
, with the third person providing the healthy mitochondrial DNA
As scientists begin to perfect this genetic editing techniques
The possibilities are endless
We could increase brain function...
Muscle mass...
Or eyesight...
Life spans could be lengthened  and new human abilities  could be developed
NEVER SAY NEVER
With genetic editing
The possibilities are endless
What wouldn't you give for a flawless life?
I  say this breakthrough starts
NOW!!!
