Genetic Information: Acquisition, Access, and Control / Edition 1

by Alison K. Thompson, Ruth F. Chadwick

Overview

It is difficult to think of an example of an advancement in the biological sciences that has had an impact on society similar to that of the new genetics. Recent developments in biotechnology have occasioned much discussion among academics, professionals, and lay people alike. In particular, many questions and concerns have arisen over the acquisi­ tion, access, and control of genetic information. There are several reasons why the new genetics has commanded such widespread attention, and why it is now the subject of con­ siderable debate. Special reference is given in this volume to the implications of genetic information for five different subject areas: eugenics, the insurance industry, the commer­ cialisation of genetic testing, strategies for raising public awareness, and the value of theo­ retical ethical and sociological frameworks in the debate. This diverse collection of papers attempts to address and critically discuss issues surrounding the control of, and access to, genetic information from ethical, medical, legal, and theoretical points of view. The first and shortest section of the book attempts to address concerns over the eugenic potential of new biotechnologies. It also provides a historical context for the de­ bate, for controversy over the subject of eugenics predates the current debate over genetic information by a considerable length of time. Indeed, by the time the first patent was is­ sued for Chakrabarty's strain of oil eating bacteria in the early 1970s, the term eugenics had already acquired strong pejorative connotations.

Product Details

ISBN-13:	9780306460524
Publisher:	Springer US
Publication date:	02/28/1999
Edition description:	1999
Pages:	336
Product dimensions:	6.14(w) x 9.21(h) x 0.24(d)

Table of Contents

Eugenics. 1. Can we Learn from Eugenics? D. Wikler. 2. Preventing Genetic Impairments: Does it Discriminate against People with Disabilities? H. Kuhse. Genetics and Insurance. 3. Private Parties, Public Duties? The Shifting Role of Insurance Companies in the Genetics Era; T. Lemmens. 4. Coercion Control, and Consequence in Genetic Testing: Views on Insurance among Tested Individuals and the General Public; R.N. Mayer, et al. 5. Genetic Testing and Adverse Selection in the Market for Life Insurance: Preliminary Findings for the BRCA1 Gene Mutation; K.R. Smith, et al. 6. Genetic Engineering and German Health Insurances; T. Uhlemann. 7. Selling Souls: Ethical Theory and the Commercialisation of Genetic Information; M. Johnston. The Commercialization of Genetic Information. 8. The Ethics of 21st Century Bioinformatics: Ethical Implications of the Vanishing Distinction between Biological Information and Other Information; D. Holdsworth. 9. There is Nothing Special about Genetic Information; S. Holm. 10. High Speed Genetic Testing Technology and the Computerization of the Medical Record; C.R. Naser. 11. Ethical Questions in the Pursuit of Genetic Information: Geneticization and BRCA1; S. Sherwin, C. Simpson. 12. The Ethics of Gene Patenting; R. Macklin. 13. Paradigms of Author/Creator Property Rights in Intellectual Property Law: Ethical Implications for the Acquisition, Access, and Control of Genetic Information; R. Mackenzie. 14. Regulating the Commercialization of Human Genetics: Can We Address the Big Concerns? T. Caulfield. 15. Ethical Impacts of Human Health-Related Biotechnology in Brazil; M. Bernardes Marques. Public Awareness. 16. Adolescents and Carrier Testing: Attitudes and Ethical Presuppositions; K. Dierickx. 17. Downs Syndrome Screening: How Do They Know? R. Bramwell, S. Wade. 18. Public Perspectives of the New Genetics: The Citizens Jury Experiment; R. Iredale, M. Longley. 19. Genetics and Journalism: A View from the United States; J. Stephenson. Theoretical Concerns. 20. Genetic Information and ‘Genetic Identity'; R.E. Ashcroft. 21. Genetic Information and Knowing when you will Die; M.P. Battin. 22. Influences of Genetic Testing on a Persons Freedom; E. Hilt. 23. Genetic Knowledge: The Contribution of Sociologies; S. Dyson. 24. Germ-Line gene Therapy: Is the Existing UK Norm Ethically Valid? S. Dziobon. 25. Negotiating the Dilemmas of Prenatal Testing for Genetic Disorders: What is the Virtuous Person to Do? A. Gallagher. 26. Genetic Information: Questions and Worries from an African Background; G.B. Tangwa. 27. Genetic Knowledge in a Just Society; N. Holtug. 28. Biotechnology, Genetic Information, and Community: From Individual Rights to Social Duties; S.K. Hellsten. 29. Linear Destiny and Geometric Fate; E. Mordini. 30. A New Framework for the Use of Genetic Information; J.A.K. Kegley. Index.

Editorial Reviews

Thirty papers representing the proceedings of a December 1997 international conference in Preston, Britain, address and critically discuss issues relating to genetic information from ethical, medical, legal, and theoretical points of view. They cover eugenics, genetics and insurance, the commercialization of genetic information, public awareness, and theoretical concerns. Specific topics include whether preventing genetic impairments discriminates against people with disabilities, the shifting role of insurance companies in the genetics era, ethical implications of the vanishing distinction between biological information and other information, genetics and journalism in the US, and influences of genetic testing on a person's freedom. Annotation c. Book News, Inc., Portland, OR (booknews.com)

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