A technology that allows parents who can afford the cost of the procedure to select which embryos should be allowed to survive based on their desired traits. In humans, selective breeding is called eugenics.
Could this new eugenics movement eventually result in a new breed of elitist humans that are sufficiently genetically distinct from the rest that the two populations are no longer genetically similar enough to interbreed?
Testing of a foetus or embryo is already common. Prenatal Down’s Syndrome tests, for instance, are so widespread that in some Scandinavian countries, almost 100 per cent of women choose to abort a foetus diagnosed with the condition, or – if using IVF – not implant the affected embryo. The result is a visible change to these populations: there are simply no more people with Down’s to be seen on the streets of Iceland and Denmark.
Until now, these prenatal tests have been available only for some conditions.
Preimplantation genetic testing for polygenic disorders (“PGT-P”), hereafter “polygenic screening,” is a genetic test designed to screen for multiple genes associated with a polygenic disorder, which is a condition caused by the interaction of multiple genetic and environmental factors. This test is typically performed on embryos created through in vitro fertilisation (“IVF”) and aims to identify embryos with a lower risk of developing a polygenic disorder....<<<Read More>>....