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B13.5 Ethics of Genetic Technologies

GCSE Combined Science · AQA · Chapter B13: Variation and Evolution

A free GCSE Combined Science: Trilogy lesson for AQA (8464) from OBA School: weighing up the benefits, risks and objections to genetic engineering in farming and medicine. Watch the video, read the explanation and worked examples, then try the revision questions. You can work through the full lesson, with every video, practice quizzes and printable worksheets with mark schemes, in our free online course.

What you will learn

  • Tell the difference between a scientific question and an ethical question
  • Explain the potential benefits and risks of genetic engineering in agriculture and in medicine
  • Explain why some people object to genetic engineering
  • Write a balanced evaluation with a justified conclusion, using data where given

Key words

  • Ethics: Ideas about what is right or wrong. Ethical questions depend on people's values, not only on evidence.
  • Benefit: A good outcome of using a technology, e.g. higher crop yields.
  • Risk: A possible harmful outcome, and how likely it is to happen.
  • Gene therapy: Treating an inherited disorder by adding a working copy of a gene to a person's cells.
  • Regulation: Laws and checks that control how a technology can be used, e.g. approval before a GM crop is grown.

Science questions and ethics questions

Science can tell us what a technology can do and what its effects are. It cannot decide on its own whether we should use it: that also depends on people's values, beliefs and the needs of society.

  • Does this GM rice contain enough of the substance that makes vitamin A?; Ethical question (answer with values) Should a company be allowed to own the rights to a crop that poor farmers need?
  • Can pollen carry the new gene to wild relatives of the crop?; Ethical question (answer with values) Is it right to move genes between different species at all?
  • Does gene therapy improve lung function in people with cystic fibrosis?; Ethical question (answer with values) Should changes ever be made that would be passed on to future generations?

Genetic engineering in agriculture

  • higher yields from pest- or disease-resistant crops; Risks and concerns effects on populations of wild flowers and insects, including insects that are not pests
  • fewer insecticide sprays; Risks and concerns genes could spread to wild relatives (e.g. weeds resistant to weedkiller)
  • crops that grow in drought, helping feed people in dry regions; Risks and concerns some feel the long-term effects of eating GM crops on health have not been fully explored
  • added nutrients, e.g. golden rice; Risks and concerns farmers may depend on (and pay) large seed companies

Worked example: using the data

Calculate the percentage fall in sprays from 2014 to 2022. (9 − 3) ÷ 9 × 100 = 66.7%
Is this a benefit or a risk? A benefit: fewer sprays means less harm to useful insects and less cost for the farmer.

Answer: a fall of 66.7% (benefit)

Genetic engineering in medicine

  • GM bacteria make pure human insulin in large amounts, so animals are not needed. Few people object to this.
  • GM animals, such as sheep that make a human blood-clotting protein in their milk, provide medicines. Concerns: animal welfare and whether it is right to use animals in this way.
  • Gene therapy could treat inherited disorders such as cystic fibrosis. Concerns: side effects, high cost and, if changes were made to eggs, sperm or embryos, changes passed to future generations and fears of "designer babies".
  • Selective breeding raises similar issues: animal welfare, inbreeding and loss of variation.

Exam tip: "Not fully explored" means there is not yet enough long-term evidence. It does not mean GM food has been shown to be harmful.

Using data and writing an evaluation

Worked example: reading the survey

What percentage of the people said yes? 147 ÷ 350 × 100 = 42%
Write the ratio of "yes" to "no" in its simplest form. 147 : 126 = 7 : 6
Is this a good sample of UK opinion? Only 350 people in one town, so it may not represent the whole country.

Answer: 42% said yes; yes : no = 7 : 6

How to answer an "evaluate" question

1. Give benefits, with a reason for each.

2. Give risks or objections, including ethical issues.

3. Use any data in the question.

4. Finish with a conclusion that says which side is stronger and why.

Common mistakes

  • Writing only one side of the argument. "Evaluate" always needs both sides and a conclusion.
  • Stating opinions as facts, e.g. "GM food is poisonous". Say what the evidence shows.
  • Mixing up genetic engineering (adding a new gene) with selective breeding (choosing parents).
  • Saying science alone can decide whether a technology should be used.

Revision questions

Try these, then check your answers below each one.

Question 1. Which of these is an ethical question rather than a scientific one? (Choose from: Is it right to move genes from animals into plants?, Does GM maize need fewer insecticide sprays?, Can pollen carry a gene to wild plants?, How much vitamin A does golden rice provide?.)

Answer: Is it right to move genes from animals into plants?

Working: Whether something is "right" depends on values, so it is ethical. The others can be tested with experiments.

Question 2. True or false? Saying the effects of eating GM crops on health are "not fully explored" means that GM food has been proven harmful.

Answer: False

Working: It means there is not yet enough long-term evidence. It does not mean harm has been shown.

Question 3. The graph shows the number of insecticide sprays per season on a maize farm. Calculate the percentage fall in sprays from 2015 to 2021.

Answer: 60 %

Working: (10 − 4) ÷ 10 × 100 = 60%.

Related lessons

Continue in the full course

This lesson is section B13.5 (AGCSC1305) of our free GCSE Combined Science course for AQA. In the full course you get every video for this section, a self-marking practice quiz, a printable worksheet with a mark scheme, chapter tests, and your progress saved. Go to the full GCSE Combined Science course.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

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