In the field of human embryo research lies a controversial science that could redefine prenatal care: genetic engineering. Genetic engineering not only offers the possibility of eliminating birth defects and genetic diseases, but also presents the moral ambiguity of eugenics. The acceptability of genetic engineering, assuming that it will be available in the near future, must be explored if society is to derive maximum benefit from it. The most important and perhaps the most acceptable reason given in favor of genetic engineering is its potential use in preventive medicine. Some cells in an embryo could be genetically analyzed to detect harmful mutations or predisposition to the disorder, at which point intervention could be made through genetic modification of somatic cells or the germ line. The gene that causes Huntington's disease was identified in 1993, and scientists are currently trying to determine its normal function (The Benefits of Genetic Engineering). Assuming researchers succeed in this effort, genetic engineering could be used to eliminate a debilitating and ultimately fatal disease that affects approximately 30,000 Americans and has the potential to affect 150,000 more through genetic inheritance (Huntington's disease). . In 1997, a group of scientists successfully diagnosed familial adenomatous polyposis of the colon, the dominant cancer predisposition syndrome, in three preimplantation embryos. This type of cancer predisposition affects 1 in 10,000 people in America, Great Britain and Japan, making it a relatively common disease (Ao, 140). Schizophrenia has been shown to run in families; even adopted children of schizophrenic parents are ten times more likely to develop schizophrenia, regardless of whether... half of article... -Stewart, Edward J. Roy, and Christopher D. Wickens, eds. Psychology, 4th ed. Boston: Houghton Mifflin Company, 1997. The Benefits of Genetic Engineering: http://web.syr.edu/~jmschroe/wrt205/screen2.html. Debate: Germline Gene Modification: http://zygote.swarthmore.edu /gene7.html.Henig, Robin Marantz. "Tempting." Discover May (1998): 58-64. Resta, Robert G. Genetic Counseling: Addressing the Human Impact of Genetic Diseases: http://www.gene.com/ae/AE/AEC/CC/counseling_ background.html. Ruben, Robert J., Thomas R. Van De Water, and Karen P. Steel, eds. Genetics of hearing disorders. New York: New York Academy of Sciences, 1991.Wolfson, Richard. Cloning, the Commercialization of Life, and God's Game (Part II): http://www.natural-law.ca/genetic/BiotechNov97.html. Huntington's disease: http://neuro-www2.mgh.harvard.edu/hdsa/Huntingtonsdisease.nclk.