Make a Life to Save a Life
Author(s)
Abstract
In this “clicker case,” students learn about meiosis through the real-life story of a couple who used pre-implantation genetic screening to select an embryo that was a genetic match for an older sibling with leukemia, and thus able to provide a source of bone marrow cells. The case caused a stir in the medical ethics community. Before this, parents had only used pre-implantation genetic screening to select for a baby that would be free from a genetic disorder. Instead, this child was conceived as a treatment for his older sister. The case was developed for use in an introductory biology course. It consists of a PowerPoint presentation (~1.5MB) shown in class that is punctuated by multiple-choice questions the students respond to using clickers. It could be adapted for use without these technologies.
Objectives
- Understand how chromosomes are distributed during meiosis to create variation in the gametes produced.
- Understand how the genetic information in a gamete differs from the information found in other somatic cells of the parent and how gametes differ from each other.
- Apply knowledge of how chromosomes are segregated during meiosis to predict the likelihood that an offspring from two parents would inherit a specific combination of chromosomes.
Keywords
Meiosis; cell division; independent assortment; pre-implantation genetic screening; embryo design; reproduction; organ donation; bioethics; medical ethicsTopical Areas
Ethics, Policy issues, Social issuesEducational Level
High school, Undergraduate lower divisionFormat
PDF, PowerPointType / Methods
Clicker, InterruptedLanguage
EnglishSubject Headings
Biology (General) | Cell Biology | Genetics / Heredity | Medicine (General) |
Date Posted
11/23/09Teaching Notes
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Answer Key
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