CONTENTS AND SUMMARY OF
ENGINEERING GENESIS
The SRT Study on the Ethics of Genetic Engineering
in Animals, Plants and Micro-organisms
Reprinted and updated November 1999
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SRT's new book "Engineering Genesis" has arrived, the culmination of a 5 year expert study on the ethical and social issues being raised by current developments in genetic engineering and cloning, in animals, plants and micro-organisms. Edited by SRT's Director Dr Donald Bruce and his wife Ann, it is published by the leading UK environmental publisher Earthscan. Aimed at both secular and Christian markets, SRT hopes this will be a landmark study on what has become one of the biggest topics of debate at the end of the Millennium.
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This web page gives the Contents of the book, the list of Case Studies
and a summary of what is covered in each chapter.
Engineering Genesis - Contents Page and Chapter Summaries
Case Studies
Main Chapters
Engineering Genesis - Extracts from the Introduction
(on a separate page, giving the context of the book and how we went about our study)
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More about the Working Group Study
Press Release on Engineering Genesis
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Further Information
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ENGINEERING GENESISCONTENTS PAGE AND CHAPTER SUMMARIES
Introduction
Setting the scene; about the working group; the structure of the book and the scope of its chapters
Chapter 1 Explaining Genetic Engineering and its Uses
This chapter introduces the techniques and concepts involved in genetic engineering, for those unfamiliar with it. It explains what genetic engineering is and illustrates something of the range of applications, by way of introduction to the Case Studies which follow.
Chapter 2 Case Studies
Eleven short Case Studies are described, representing some of the main areas of genetic modification. Each is chosen as an illustration of particular ethical issues, sometimes several per case. They are written in a standard format, which first explains the basic science involved and then identifies the relevant ethical implications, but does not discuss them in any detail.
Case Study 1. Lighting up the soil
- Genetically modified soil bacteria
Case Study 2. To boldly grow where no crop has grown before
- Genetically modifying plants for harsh environments
Case Study 3. A thousand and one uses for oilseed rape
- Novel oils from genetically modified oilseed
Case Study 4. Vaccination made easy
- Proteins from plants, using genetically modified plant viruses
Case Study 5. The sting in the cabbage
- Genetically modified insect viruses as pesticides
Case Study 6. Genetically Modified Tomatoes
- Seeking firmer tomatoes with better flavour
Case Study 7. BST - Bovine Somatotropin
- Boosting milk yields with hormones produced in genetically modified bacteria
Case Study 8. Pharmaceuticals from milk
- Producing pharmaceuticals in sheep milk
Case Study 9. Xenotransplantation
- Organ transplants from genetically modified pigs
Case Study 10. Modelling human disease
- Genetically modified mice as models of human diseases
Case Study 11. Dolly mixture
- Cloning by nuclear transfer to improve genetic engineering in animals
Eight chapters then follow in which the issues identified in the Case Studies are gathered into what were seen by the working group as the main groups of questions for broader discussion.
Chapter 3 Ethics Under the Microscope
The first major topics are the underlying issues and ethical perspectives on genetic engineering. After a brief introduction to key ethical concepts, some basic ethical questions are explored which underlie the debate about genetic engineering. Whether genetic engineering is in principle right or wrong is discussed in three different contexts - playing God, unnaturalness, and the complex web of relationships in the ecosystem. This leads to an assessment of the ethics of transferring genes between unrelated species, and a reflection on the distinctions made over human intervention in the chain of organisms from microbes, through plants to animals. The last part of the chapter considers briefly the consequences of genetic engineering.
Chapter 4 Genetic Engineering and Animal Welfare.
This chapter examines in some detail the implications of genetic engineering for animal welfare. It looks at the welfare effects of genetic modification and also of the techniques used to achieve it, and notes both direct and indirect effects. It discusses how society evaluates the protection of animal welfare in genetic engineering, and questions the adequacy of some of the current legislation.
Chapter 5 Animal Ethics and Human Benefit
Having examined welfare issues, the wider ethical question is now examined of how far human beings are justified in intervening in the lives of animals, in the context of the four Case Studies involving animal modification - producing pharmaceuticals in milk, providing organs for transplant, mouse disease models and cloning. Various ethical frameworks, such as animal rights, are reviewed critically. In weighing up genetic intervention and cloning in animals against human benefits, ideas about the right and wrong use of animals are discussed, together with how human benefits may be assessed. Societal factors such as familiarity and the so-called "yuk" factor are evaluated.
Chapter 6 Transgenic Food
Examining the issues raised by applying genetic engineering to food crops and animals. Plant genetic engineering is examined first in an analysis of the special questions raised by the application of genetic modification to food. It assesses the fundamental objections, both religious and ecological, and critiques the justification based on "copy genes". Health issues are briefly discussed. There is extensive discussion of who should be the beneficiaries of this technology, the obligation to label modified food, and the problems and public accountability of the regulatory bodies set up to monitor this area.
Chapter 7 Letting out the Genie : Environmental Risk
This chapter looks at the environmental risks risks from the release of genetically modified organisms, particularly plants, and assesses the ways in which these are regulated. It first identifies the nature of the hazards. It then contrasts the reactive and precautionary approaches to risk regulation which are applied to this area, and evaluates the pressures to relax the precautionary regime in the UK and EU. The ethical issues of precaution are discussed, looking at the commercial, societal and global dimensions.
Chapter 8 Patenting Life
The controversial issue of applying patenting to biological material is explored in this chapter. It first describes what a patent is and how the system of patenting has been applied to biotechnology, with particular reference to EU legislation. The place of ethical judgements in patenting is then examined. Arguments for and against the patenting of genetically modified organisms are discussed, including its impact on research, on attitudes to nature and public accountability of biotechnology. The importance of relating patenting to public ethical assessment is identified.
Chapter 9 Genetic Engineering and the Third World
Here we discuss the ethical implications of genetic engineering for Third World countries, and in particular the role which it might play in feeding a rapidly growing world population. The dilemmas assessed include cash crops, intellectual property rights, risks from the release of genetically modified organisms, and who sets and funds the research agenda.
Chapter 10 The Social Context of Genetic Engineering
The final topical chapter relates genetic engineering to questions about knowledge, social values, rationality and democracy. It highlights the fact that genetic engineering does not take place in a vacuum but in a specific social context. It examines science and technology as social processes, what drives them, who benefits and who loses. It critiques the notion that scientific rationality is the only valid means of ethical and social assessment and points to other forms of rationality. It considers what controls biotechnology in a plural society, and examines role of special interest groups - both industrial and environmental - and the part played by risk, scepticism and responsibility.
Chapter 11 Final Reflections
This concluding chapter reflects on the main insights and themes which have emerged from the study, and summarises the key questions which are posed by genetic engineering in non-human species.
Appendices
Appendix 1 - Glossary
Appendix 2 - Genetic Engineering Concepts and Techniques
Appendix 3 - Frameworks for Making Ethical Assessments
Appendix 4 - Society, Religion and Technology Project
Notes and References
Further Reading
Index
Engineering Genesis is now available from major bookshops and many Christian booksellers in Scotland and across the UK, at 12.99 UK Pounds paperback, 40.00 hardback, or from the SRT Project directly (with a small charge for postage and packing) .
Click here for details of how To Order Copies of Engineering Genesis
Where to Buy Engineering Genesis
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For more information about the book and its background, see also our page on the SRT Study on the Ethics of Genetic Engineering in Non-human Species.
For more information about genetic engineering and cloning, see also our pages on Genetic Engineering issues and Cloning issues
If you want to contact us or obtain further information or receive our latest Newsletter,
email us at :
mailto:srtp@srtp.org.uk
or send an ordinary letter or fax to :
Dr.Donald M.Bruce,
Society, Religion and Technology Project,
, 121 George Street, Edinburgh, EH2 4YN, Scotland.
tel. +44 (0)131-240 2250, fax +44 (0)131-240 2239,
email address : srtp@srtp.org.uk
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