Cell Biology and Ethics: Knowledge, Attitudes and Practices of (original) (raw)
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Cell Biology and Ethics: Knowledge, Attitudes and Practices of Anatomists in India
Journal of Biosciences and Medicines, 2015
Most scientific discoveries and advancements have occurred in the world in the last century. Both developed and developing countries are the beneficiaries of the new scientific knowledge and its application. Advanced knowledge and the ethical issues are inseparable from research, treatment, prophylaxis and prevention involving human diseases. It is necessary to make well informed decisions about acceptance of advancements that have taken place elsewhere and also prepare systems for our research and medical education. Bioethics therefore needs to be grounded in the local socio cultural context and health care systems. Students make first contact with human biological tissue in the Anatomy department. The seeds of ethical practices and professionalism are sown here. Therefore appropriate knowledge and attitudes of anatomists and cell biologists towards human tissue is important for regular practice of medicine. A questionnaire based study of knowledge and attitudes of 300 anatomy faculty related to use of human biological materials in research and education was conducted. The items included in the questionnaire were to judge the awareness about the same i.e., laboratory handling of human material and research related to corpses, organ & whole body donation along with their use in clinical learning and research in various medical specialties like, orthopedics, surgery, ENT, anesthesia etc. for clinicians, physicians and surgeons as well as undergraduate, post graduate and allied workforce teaching. The data collected from the respondents in the form of positive and negative responses was analyzed. The study identifies the knowledge gaps and the perceptions of faculty regarding the scope and utility of understanding the role of human biological tissues in curriculum and research and transmission of message to the next generation of learners.
As students in the first academic year of the study of biotechnology and biomedicine it is imperative that certain lifelong concepts are introduced to you. Some of these concepts include those needed on a personal level to help establish logical thinking skills – which is a vital skill to anyone studying in the field of science and technology. Biotechnology is an emerging field of study that has taken centre-stage and a refusal to accept its role in the improvement of science would be a regression into the dark ages; however with its study and application comes some pertinent ethical issues. Thus as a guarantee that we do not train just scientists but human beings with a moral fibre it is necessary that at the earliest stage you are introduced to aspects of the discourse in a non-biased way. However it must be emphasised that there is no absolute right or wrong in these arguments and you as a student is the final judge on the issues presented. The important aspect is that for every discussion your presentation of your views must be based on sound research and your decisions must be informed by this. Equally, paramount is the understanding that everyone individual has his own viewpoint and this must be respected even if we disagree with this.
During the last 30 years medical science has progressed by leaps and bounds, but oddly enough, never before has human life been threatened so much and so directly from this progress. It is the first time that scientists have not realized so tragically their responsibilities arisen from α thoughtless disperse of medical methods, which could eventually put the subsistence of the human beings itself into jeopardy. Both in an international level and a national one, medical unions, states and governments seek for a code of ethics in medical behavior which is generally accepted, avoiding any kind of dogmatism that would immerge from ideological, philosophical, political or religious thoughts on behalf of the doctors, as well as their consequent parameters which is propaganda, fanaticism and enforcement
Pakistan Journal of Medical Sciences Online, 2013
Objective: To assess awareness, attitudes and opinions regarding bioethical issues among graduate students and faculty/researchers of universities in Lahore, Pakistan. Methodology: A questionnaire consisting of 20 questions was designed and sent to 700 students and faculty members/researchers of 14 academic departments/research institutions of seven universities in Lahore, Pakistan. Data were analyzed with descriptive statistics using SPSS 16.0. Results: We obtained responses from 87% (614/700) participants. The sample populations appeared receptive to latest developments in science and technology; and were optimistic that such developments will have positive effect on their lives. On average almost 90% of the respondents were familiar with the term "bioethics"; 75.4% of the respondents desired that bioethics should be taught regularly in the classes. However, students of two important disciplines of knowledge i.e law and Islamic studies had awareness levels of only 43% and '0'% respectively regarding the term bioethics. A vast majority of the respondents were not satisfied with the state laws, policies, rules, regulations and institutions concerned with bioethical issues. The survey indicated that cloning (27.2%), abortion (24.6%) and organ donation (13.2%) are regarded as the most important bioethical issues, probably for specific reasons of the glamour attached to the technology, moral connotations and the hype created by media respectively. Conclusion: Educated youth in general have positive attitude towards S&T and its effect on their lives. Awareness level among students and faculty of life sciences is very high; however it is dismally low among students of Law and Islamic studies. The results of this survey does not necessarily mirror the awareness level, attitudes and opinions in the society at large since literacy level among the masses is low (57%) and prevalence of higher levels of education is even lower.
Biochemistry and molecular biology education : a bimonthly publication of the International Union of Biochemistry and Molecular Biology, 2017
The profound advances in the biomolecular sciences over the last decades have enabled similar advances in biomedicine. These advances have increasingly challenged our abilities to deploy them in an equitable and ethically acceptable manner. As such, it has become necessary and important to teach biomedical and scientific ethics to our students who will become the researchers, medical professionals, and global citizens of the future. As advances in the biosciences and medicine are made, developed, and used across the globe, our survival on an endangered planet requires global dialog and consensual action. To that end, a group of us from around the world have come together to describe the differing foundations of our ethical beliefs, and how ethical issues in biomedicine and in science are described and confronted in our countries. We hope to show the commonality in our beliefs and practices and to encourage readers from around the world to contribute to a continuing discussion throug...
In recent decades medical education curricula have undergone many modifications for a variety of reasons. In spite of these changes, ethics education has not received adequate attention in medical schools throughout the world. There is an emerging need for introduction of teaching medical ethics as a consequence of several social and scientific reasons. Bioethics has brought about significant changes in standards for the treatment of the sick and for the conduct of research. The bioethical issues being addressed are numerous to count, but the flavor of bioethics in the early twenty-first century can be conveyed by an exploration of the bioethical implications of genetic research, health care access reform, and stem cell research.
Seishin shinkeigaku zasshi = Psychiatria et neurologia Japonica, 1986
How can ethics relate to science? The case of stem cell research
European Journal of Human Genetics, 2012
We live in an era of an important turning point in the relationship between ethics (or, more accurately, bioethics) and science, notably due to both public interest and the gradual tightening of the gap in time between scientific discoveries and ethical reflection. The current bioethics debates of emerging situations (pluripotent stem cells, gene therapy, nanotechnology) have undoubtedly contributed to this change. Today, science happens and bioethics reflects on the possibilities, considers the risks, and advances proposals, which, without being scientific, can also imprint a mark on the path of scientific development. In this article, through the narrative of stem cell research, we will try to illustrate how bringing a bioethical viewpoint to the scientific debate can become a healthy exercise in both ethics and science, especially as narratives shift, as was the case in this field due to the introduction of induced pluripotent stem cells, the advent of which is not easily dissociated from the controversies related to embryo research. We should perhaps welcome this trend as promising for the future relationship between ethics and scientific research, providing a stimulus (and not a block) to the ever-evolving scientific discourse.