Abstract

Mate selection in humans is an important social activity which is central to every individual’s life. The debate on the ethics of generating and using genetic information has been of concern to several researchers from the time of the completion of the human genome project till now. Some of the important questions to consider include whether it is ethical to generate and use genetic information in mate selection. This piece of literature is focused on critically evaluating the possible impacts of the knowledge of the genomic information on the choice of a life partner from the African perspective. Key words: Mate selection, ethical, legal and social issues, genome information.

Highlights

  • The completion of the human genome project has instigated the development of a genome-wide association study (GWAS) which enhanced the practice of genetic screening, diagnosis, and treatment (Wu et al, 2009)

  • The easy access to generating genetic information has led to the commercialization of genomic medicine and counseling

  • Knowing the problems associated with genome information, it is difficult for couples preparing for marriage to disclose their genetic information to their partners

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Summary

Introduction

The completion of the human genome project has instigated the development of a genome-wide association study (GWAS) which enhanced the practice of genetic screening, diagnosis, and treatment (Wu et al, 2009). The GWAS approach has facilitated the unbiased association of the entire human genome to diseases. Through the human genome project, the techniques for sequencing has been improved decreased the cost of sequencing portions of an individual’s genome and gave easy access to genetic information. The easy access to generating genetic information has led to the commercialization of genomic medicine and counseling. The global development of commercial genomics in research, diagnosis, and treatment has the potential of increasing a wealth of opportunities which may translate into billions of dollars (Agarwal et al, 2013; Cho et al, 1999; Pirmohamed, 2014; So and Joly, 2013). In sub-Saharan Africa there is a need to conduct comprehensive research to identify novel pathogenic genes using the “multi-OMICS” approaches aimed towards personalized medicine and gene therapy (Adadey et al, 2017)

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