In Vitro Fertilization Research

At any point in her life, a woman can discover that she is unable to have children on her own due to being infertile. While some women are unabashed by such information, many others are filled with grief and sorrow at the thought of not being able to give birth and raise children. The same can be said about infertile men; while men of course do not give birth, being infertile can be upsetting, or sometimes humiliating. In past years, science has produced several solutions to the problem of infertility, and the most talked-about solution today is in vitro fertilization, or IVF. This is a type of artificial insemination. It is a complicated procedure which involves removing a mature reproductive egg from a woman's ovaries and combing it with

One of the benefits of IVF is that it can be done in many different ways; in addition, while IVF is a procedure normally done on the behalf of females being infertile, it can be used in replacement of a man's sperm as well (as mentioned before). One method is for a woman to use another woman's eggs and her own partner's sperm for the procedure. Another method is for the man with dysfunctional sperm to choose the sperm of another man at a sperm bank, and use his partner's eggs, to create an embryo. Some patients may even choose a gestational carrier, or a separate woman who has the embryo planted in her uterus, used in their procedure. (In Vitro) The possibilities and combinations are plentiful, making IVF appealing to many types of people with many different morals. Another reason some people may turn to IVF is if they are in a non-heterosexual relationship and do not have the means of having a child on their own. While it is true that most gay couples seeking to raise children go through the adoption process, most female homosexuals have the option of using IVF to have a man's sperm fertilized with her egg, and to then carry the embryo inside

For example, if a baby is born with a sex-linked disorder such as Turner's syndrome, after making a diagnosis, the doctor can consult the parents about gene therapy. If approved, the doctor can take a sample of the baby's DNA and perform a southern blotting method in order to pinpoint the exact segment of DNA which is disordered (in this case, the problem is due to a lack of a second X chromosome). Amazingly, southern blotting can also be used in crime solving! Forensic anthropologists sometimes use the southern blotting method on the fingerprints found at a crime scene in order to identify whom it belongs to. It is not commonly known how exactly forensics is used in DNA identification, and this is one of the methods used. (DNA