Genetic engineering is a technology that is constantly being developed. Genetic engineering is a promising technology for humans because it is believed to be able to cure various diseases for which no cure has yet been found.
What is genetic engineering?
Genetic engineering is the process of changing genetics in organisms. Since it was first discovered, this technology has been widely used for plant and animal breeding. Modern biotechnology makes it easier for genetic engineering to reach its intended gene targets. Genetic engineering allows modified organisms to eliminate unwanted traits and increase beneficial traits. An example is corn which has been genetically engineered to have larger and more corn kernels.
Genetic engineering in humans
Genetic engineering is not only used in agriculture and animal husbandry to create superior food for humans, it is also used directly on humans. Genetic engineering has the potential to be a cure for many human ailments. For the first time, the application of genetic engineering technology to humans is in diabetics. Treatment of diabetics is to use insulin. However, it is impossible for scientists to extract insulin directly from humans. That is why scientists use insulin from animals as well as bacteria. Both were genetically modified to be similar to human insulin. Currently, insulin is a genetically modified product that has been approved and widely used in humans. Another promising application of genetic engineering to treatment is for the treatment of cancer. Reporting from PubMed Central NCBI, since the 1900s, more than 1,900 clinical trials have been conducted to optimize genetic engineering in humans. In 1999, 20 people were involved in clinical trials of genetic engineering to treat leukemia. Four patients made a full recovery, but one patient died due to oncogene activation during trials using the virus. Therefore, further research is needed to use genetic engineering as a cancer drug.
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