Cloning And Assisted Reproduction: Controversial Topics In Modern Society

What is cloning and why is it controversial?

Question:

Write about the Ethical Issues of Artificial Fertilisation for Assisted Fertilization.

Cloning is rapidly emerging as one of the most controversial and emotion-laden topics in todays world. To clone or not to clone: that is the million-dollar question. The prospect of cloning humans is highly controversial and raises a number of ethical, legal and social challenges that need to be considered. So, is it right or is it wrong? Can we not overlook this aspect since there are many advantages to it? But then again, a line has to be drawn somewhere, does not it? Before going into the controversial debate over cloning, a concrete, dictionary definition of what a clone is, must be understood in order to prevent any confusion. A clone is defined as an asexually reproduced offspring who has the same genetic information as another organism or organisms.

Assisted fertilisation is a matter of much civil argument in current society , whether human cloning should be permitted with the goal that barren couples could have the chance to have hereditarily related youngsters, give individuals the possibility of eternal life, and open the route for idealized coordinate organ transplants, or should it be restricted on the grounds that it includes the waste and pulverization of human developing lives, could prompt out of line treatment of cloned people and their unique, and it might prompt an "architect" society. In the modern society some agree for assisted reproduction where as others disagree against assisted reproduction for various reasons. Cloning is considered to be a biological discourse and very few person have actually focussed on the cultural context they have made cloning conceivable

Pera and Trounson,  (2013) have put forward the arguments that cloning involves the killing of a potential human being. This is due to the fact as in cloning the nucleus of a somatic cell is introduced in an egg from which the nucleus has been removed. It can be stimulated that the cells can be reprogrammed and developed in to an embryo, from which the stem cells can be removed. Since the nucleus is removed from the egg, hence contradicting the fundamental principle of the medical ethics. Brezina and Zhao (2012) have critiqued that, in the realm of genetics one should be safe and many of the scientist argue that cloning is too unreliable. (Schenker 1997) have opposed this by the fact that clone is nothing but amass of cells that has not been implanted. It has been argued that there is no loss of a potential human being as unfertilised eggs are used in cloning.

As per World Health Organization (WHO) fruitlessness is characterized as an infection which requires complex approach (medicinal, legitimate and moral), investigation and medications. The treatment which is utilized to beat barrenness is helped generation (assisted reproduction) and the most connected strategies are In vitro fertilisation /Intra cytoplasmic sperm injection. The utilization of the helped regenerative advancements (ART) offers opportunity to numerous individuals to get posterity. "Five million children are a reasonable exhibition that IVF and ICSI are presently a fundamental piece of standardized and institutionalized clinical treatments for the treatment of barren couples."(Dr. Anna Veiga, chairman of the European Society of Human Reproduction and Embryology; Retrieved February 23, 2014). 

Assisted reproduction and its impact on modern society

It is just as of late that, society has woken up to the injury endured by numerous embraced individuals through not knowing their introduction to the world guardians. For some, more noteworthy transparency has come past the point of no return: the wrong can never be corrected, as verifiable records are missing or may never have existed (Schenker 1997).

Using unknown sperm and egg can lead to analogous situation following their conception through parents. They will never know the full points of interest of their hereditary parentage, and, it is progressively attested, their personality rights will be traded off therefore. Scarlett (1984) has supported the fact that artificial insemination can help out the single mothers, but an argument cans be raised regarding the welfare of the child. The author have raised the ethical question that since the name of the sperm donors remain confidential, there is a great chance that the same material can be used for multiple inseminations, in that case those children will be half brothers. Gardner and Simón (2017) on the other hand have argued that Knowledge of sperm donor may cause obnoxious situation in future or may bring about several complication in the future related to the parental custody.

There is an increasing awareness of importance of sense of identity for every person because it is not only about psychological wellbeing but about health issues, like the genetically inherited diseases. These test tube babies have the right to receive information about their genetic inheritance (Deirdre Madden; Irish Times 2018)

Infertility can be caused due to the deficiencies in semen quality or due to certain condition in the female reproductive system that prevents the mother to conceive or bear child. As per Gardner and Simón  (2017), in 45 % of the couples, the reasons for the infertility, is the female. Some of the factors are the ovulatory problems, cervical problems, uterine problems and problems related to fallopian tube. Male infertility is found in 30% of the infertile couples. The most common cause is the oilgo spermia , where the semen would be of poor quality and would show poor motility. Azoospermia refers to no production of sperm which can be caused due to the lack of vas deference.  It was guessed that it could be because of four factors, for example, deferred childbearing, issue on semen quality as a result of unfortunate propensities, for example, cigarette smoking and injurious liquor admission, changes in sexual conduct (Olmedo, Chilik and Kopelman, 173). It is a result of these considered elements that, reviews on fruitless couples are centered around ovulatory factor which is available to 20% of couples, utero-tubal peritoneal factor, which is available to 30% of couples, at that point 40% of couples have together the two past variables and 15% of couples can be analyzed due to no changes (Olmedo, Chilik and Kopelman, 173). 

There are several studies that demonstrate the accompanying figures with respect to in vitro preparation (Ezra and Schenker, 127). The use of IVF as a fruitlessness treatment began in 1985 and more than 53,635 ladies were at that point treated which is equivalent to around 34,316 infants conceived by 224,473 treatment cycles and then after this there were 160,518 exchange cycles. With the subsequent pregnancies, around 65% to 75% could think of live births then the rest went to unconstrained premature births of around 26% and ectopic pregnancies of around 5.54%. The higher rates of preterm conveyances and perinatal mortality have been explained by around 22% of various pregnancy rates which was higher than the ordinary populace. It stayed to around 2.25% of chromosomal deviations and deformities as archived inside the years and achievement rate for in vitro preparation did not enhance inside the secured period amid the overview. Pera and Trounson (2013) have pointed out that IVF can sometimes be unsuccessful and patients might have to take up more than one cycle of treatment. Another risk related to IVF fertilisation is that in the treatment, more than one embryo can be put in to the uterus which increases the chance of multiple pregnancies that can bring about harm to both the child and the mother. It can also raise the chance of ectopic pregnancy. 

Ethical and legal issues surrounding cloning and assisted reproduction

Helped regenerative innovation (ART) is a piece of the adjustments in fruitlessness practise. It gave a correct opportunity to consider fundamental conceptive procedures (Olmedo, Chilik and Kopelman, 173). The reason is that ART is a manufactured means that is utilized as a part of request to accomplish pregnancy.

In 2006, Canada detailed that with ART, clinical pregnancy and live birth rates kept on expanding than the earlier years, yet just little rate diminish for different births (Gunby et al., 2189). As stated by (Sifer et al.150), ART has been acceptable in most of the Asian countries, however there are certain countries where the ART is influenced by religion. The artificial insemination technique is banned in certain Muslim countries. However Pera and Trounson, (2013) argue over the fact that there are difference in attitudes towards the male and the female fertility.  For example in Lebanon, donor eggs are allowed if they are to be used by the husband of the donor. 

 IVF was used traditionally used for helping out both the men and the women to address the infertility issues, where the egg is fertilised outside the female body and then placed in the uterus for an implantation.

Takahashi et al. (586) found that oocytes have incredible opportunity to be treated when follicles can make high centralizations of AMH in the follicular liquid. It is in this outcome that AMH was observed to be a huge indicator for treatment. It was discovered that follicular volume can be the new pointer of oocyte development. The investigation of Fuentes et al. (616) found that SonoAVC with regards to assessment of animated ovaries can be solid enabling further to set up new criteria for timing hCG organization on follicular volume estimation rather than the follicular size.

From the consequence of the investigation of Sifer et al. (150), they found that glanula cells of people and its protection from apoptosis has the likelihood to be related with the achievement rate of IVF. There was a relationship between the declining times of the embedded incipient organism with the embryos; weakened development rates (Hsu et al., 679).

Human hereditary information and human proteomic information should be gathered, prepared, utilized and put away in a method that is straightforward and morally worthy. States should attempt to include society everywhere in the basic leadership process concerning expansive strategies for the accumulation, preparation, utilization, human hereditary information, human proteomic information and the assessment of their administration, specifically on account of population based hereditary investigations. This basic leadership process, which may profit by global experience, ought to guarantee the free articulation of different perspectives.

Free, multidisciplinary and pluralist moral boards of trustees are ought  to be advanced and should be built up at national, local, neighbourhood or institutional levels, as per the arrangements of Article 16 of the Universal Declaration on the Human Genome and Human Rights. The morals boards of trustees at national level are ought to be counselled with respect to the foundation of measures, controls and rules for the gathering, handling, and utilization of human hereditary information, human proteomic information and organic examples.

Arguments for and against cloning and assisted reproduction

At the point when the gathering, handling, utilize and capacity of human hereditary information, human proteomic information or natural examples are completed in at least two States, the moral boards of trustees in the States concerned are ought to be counselled and the survey of these inquiries at the correct level has to be founded on the standards set out in this Declaration and on the moral and legitimate benchmarks received by the States concerned.

The act of commercial surrogacy remains ethically disagreeable, regardless of that it keeps on being polished around the world. Armour (2012) has argued that surrogacy makes the child an object of legal transaction, where the women used for surrogacy is used as an incubator. This violates the dignity of both the mother and the unborn child. In some cases, the parents might not accept their child due to certain clinical factors such as (for example, hereditary disorders) in the child. Twine (2015) has indicated the exploitations of the women who work as surrogate mothers. Armour (2012) has stated that a child born by surrogacy can have parentage relationship such as the commissioning parents, the surrogate mother, and in some case the husband of the surrogate mother. Dempsey (2013) has supported the point of surrogacy as it brings happiness of parenthood to a couple who would have otherwise not been able to enjoy it, for example in case of the same sex couples or there might be availability of child for the adoption (Twine 2015).

Different purviews perceive appointing couples as the guardians of a youngster by regarding the surrogacy contract as enforceable. Parks and Murphy (2018) have stated that there is some jurisdiction that considers the surrogacy contracts to be unenforceable. This is due to the fact that a surrogate may want to keep the child, if she chooses to do so or may give the child to the commissioned parents by the means of adoption.  However there are certain jurisdictions where the surrogacy contracts are considered as enforceable (Taebi 2014). In such a situation the child bearer should not gave the right to alter her mind and keep the child after the birth.  According to the law the surrogate mother that gestates the baby will recognise the commissioning couple as the legal parent of the child born with the aid of a commercial surrogate. Some commissioning parent might have abandoned the child and in that case the surrogate might face an unexpected or unwanted maternal responsibility to the child. It should be mentioned that the surrogate mothers are generally considered as " vessels' and hence it would be wrong to expect the surrogate to take maternal responsibility of the baby just because they had escaped from their parental duty due to one reason or the other (Deonandan et al. 2013).  The stigma of surrogate mothers considered as ‘gestational carriers’ also alters the sense of responsibility of the surrogates towards the child. For example, An Australian man who contracted with a Thai woman to gestate a child for him and his spouse described the woman in precisely that language; “gestational carrier”. Indeed, the very dialect of 'gestational bearer' imposes a moral separation between the lady and the baby she is carrying. Hence in many cases it can be seen that the word ‘mother’ does not apply to any body to who gestates but is only confined to the commissioned parents (Parks and Murphy 2018). 

The importance of identity and infertility

Many such cases of child abandonment have been found in case of surrogacy contracts. Beneath, we portray three illustrative cases.

In 2008, a Japanese couple had got an Indian lady to gestate a baby by using the donor ova and the husband’s sperm. Prior to the child was conceived, the two separated, and both the charging mother and the surrogate declined obligation regarding the baby. The charging father confronted lawful vulnerability on being perceived as the child’s dad under the law, since India did not allow reception of children by single men. In such a condition the child literally becomes an orphan.  (The Keenan Institute for Ethics at Duke University, https://web.duke.edu/kenanethics/CaseStudies/BabyManji.pdf) 

The law in a few situations imposes obligation on appointing couples for babies conceived by means of commercial surrogacy, regardless of the event that they might be disappointed with the baby conceived. In spite of this the law is not applicable all over the globe (Parks and Murphy 2018). In some cases the commissioned couples may escape from the duty of the child and in that case stringent laws should be imposed for the commissioned parents (Schenker and Shushan 1996). The appointing couple deserted one twin in Thailand while taking the other back to Australia with them and did on account  of medicinal, custodial and political vulnerability . In such cases the question arises regarding the custody of the child. Should the responsibility in such a case lies with the gestational bearer. Armour (2012) have opposed this and has opined that in no case the baby should be orphaned even if the commissioned parents refuse to take the responsibility of the child. 

Taebi (2014) however have said that the surrogate also bears a sense of responsibility towards the child that a mother normally has, only if the parents refuse to take the responsibility of the child. Although it might not be her duty to care for the gestated child but there lays the emotional attachment between the mother and the baby. Amrita Pande did a study regarding the Indian gestational surrogates, and in her interviews, the women reported that they were explicitly told they were serving only as vessels, and they were warned against forming attachment to the children they would bear (Parks and Murphy 2018).

Conclusion

The law usually treats a lady who conceives an offspring as the mother of the child, unless an enforceable legal bounding gives maternity to a lady or unless there is an arrangement for adoption. A lady can, obviously, additionally surrender the child to a state office without exchanging maternal duty. Considering things, in light of the fact that lawful measures are not uniform over the globe, few children born to surrogates are in danger of relinquishment by either of their charging guardians. One potential answer for these surrogacy vagrants—children who have been dismissed by their charging guardians—requires the ladies who gestated them, to accept accountability for their care. Doing such would offer consistent duty regarding the child from the purpose of relinquishment by the commissioning guardian.

Any desire of such maternal obligation is at last conflicting with the status of parenthood that is generally withheld from surrogates who—as usual—are relied upon to surrender key components of that character all through incubation. On the off chance that we keep on imagining surrogates as an option that is different than mothers as they consider and gestate for others, we are unable to allocate maternal obligation regarding those youngsters in an ethical sense just in light of the fact that the commissioned guardians refuse to take the child. The commissioned parents should not be given any chance to walk away from the responsibilities and stringent laws should be imposed for this. The benefits of commercial  surrogacy should not be assessed, in this manner, just with respect to examples of children deserted by appointing guardians. The ethical dangers and benefits of commercial surrogacy should be assessed. 

References 

Armour, K.L., 2012. An overview of surrogacy around the world. Nursing for women's health, 16(3), pp.231-236.

Brezina, P.R. and Zhao, Y., 2012. The ethical, legal, and social issues impacted by modern assisted reproductive technologies. Obstetrics and gynecology international, 2012.

Dempsey, D., 2013. Surrogacy, gay male couples and the significance of biogenetic paternity. New Genetics and Society, 32(1), pp.37-53.

Deonandan, R., Green, S. and Van Beinum, A., 2012. Ethical concerns for maternal surrogacy and reproductive tourism. Journal of Medical Ethics, pp.medethics-2012.

Gardner, D.K. and Simón, C. eds., 2017. Handbook of in vitro fertilization. CRC press.

Palermo, G.D., Neri, Q.V., Monahan, D., Kocent, J. and Rosenwaks, Z., 2012. Development and current applications of assisted fertilization. Fertility and sterility, 97(2), pp.248-259.

Parks, J.A. and Murphy, T.F., 2018. So not mothers: responsibility for surrogate orphans. Journal of medical ethics, pp.medethics-2017.

Pera, M. and Trounson, A., 2013. Cloning debate: Stem-cell researchers must stay engaged. Nature, 498(7453), p.159.

Saxena, P., Mishra, A. and Malik, S., 2012. Surrogacy: ethical and legal issues. Indian journal of community medicine: official publication of Indian Association of Preventive & Social Medicine, 37(4), p.211.

Scarlett, B.F., 1984. The moral status of embryos. Journal of medical ethics, 10(2), pp.79-81.

Schenker, J.G. and Shushan, A., 1996. Ethical and legal aspects of assisted reproduction practice in Asia. Human reproduction, 11(4), pp.908-911.

Schenker, J.G., 1997. Assisted reproduction practice in Europe: legal and ethical aspects. Human Reproduction Update, 3(2), pp.173-184.

Taebi, M., 2014. Behind the Scenes of Surrogacy. Nurs Midwifery Stud, 3(4), p.e23600.

Twine, F.W., 2015. Outsourcing the womb: Race, class and gestational surrogacy in a global market. Routledge.