By Anthony J . Zuccarelli ETHICAL CHOICES IN THE GENETIC AGE

R eproductive cloning dominated the science news for several years after the announcement of Dolly the sheep’s birth in 1997. The extended debate has produced a broad consensus that cloning is too risky at present to apply the procedure to humans. The same conclusion was reached by the Christian View of Human Life Committee sponsored by the General Conference of Seventh-day Adventists. Scientists’ continuing inability to clone nonhuman primates and the report that multiple genes are inappropriately expressed in all cloned animals certainly reinforce those decisions. Furthermore, despite public fascination with the subject, there are relatively few practical uses for the technology. Even as a reproductive aid for infertile couples, reproductive cloning will likely find only limited use in human medicine. In less than three years, reproductive cloning has been eclipsed by stem-cell biology with its conceptual power and medical potential. The spotlight of debate shifted dramatically to embryonic stem cells shortly after their discovery in 1998. Public discussion accelerated when President George W. Bush addressed the subject in a national speech, and the debate continues. On September 3, 2002, California Governor Gray Davis, in a press conference featuring paralyzed actor Christopher Reeve, signed state legislation that approved funding for embryonic stem-cell research in direct conflict with federal prohibitions. A few days later, former First Lady Nancy Reagan allowed her dissatisfaction with current stem-cell policy to become public. In June, Former President Gerald Ford spoke out in the Washington Post, calling a ban on embryonic stem-cell research the equivalent to “slamming the door to lifesaving cures and treatments.” Though recent geopolitical events have pushed biomedical topics to the inside pages of newspapers, students (and probably their parents) are likely to be confused, or at least curious, why thoughtful scientists, respected politicians, and well-known personalities are butting heads with the U.S. Government over what seems to be a promising avenue of medical research. Furthermore, the stem-cell debate offers teachers an unrivaled opportunity to help their students examine and share their ideas about what makes human life valuable. By Anthony J. Zuccarelli ETHICAL CHOICES IN THE GENETIC AGE