Every year more and more discoveries are being made with the

Every year more and more discoveries are being made with the science behind conception and fetal development. Is it possible to determine if a sperm and egg will produce a male or female embryo? If so, how is this done? And what are the pros/cons for this science developing even further so that parents can choose the identity of their children? What are your thoughts? 100 words or more

Solution

Yes it is possible to determine that a sperm and egg will produce a male or female during fertilization.There are two methods for gender selection.1)sperm sorting and 2) PGD (Pre-implantation genetic diagnosis) with IFV.

Sperm sorting :It is a technique for separating two types of chromosome found in semen,X and Y.If a women gets pregnant with the semen contains mostly X sperm the baby will be XX (girl) and if a women gets pregnant with the semen contains mostly Y sperm the baby will be XY(boy).

PGD : It is a technique used to identify genetic defects of embryo.

Pros of gender selection: It is advisable for parents with genetic disorder,it can prevent gender related diseases,it may reduce abortion rate.For planinng a family gender selection is beneficial for parents.

Cons of gender selection: It is very extortionate procedure.It may produce unnatural level of human population and may lead to male dominated population.