Recombinant DNA

Abstract

Our society acknowledges the prominence of certain individuals, or movements, in a variety of ways not the least of which is the awarding of the cover story in a national magazine. Richard Nixon, the Pope, Dolly Parton, and the Silent Majority have all received bountiful attention and display on magazine racks in supermarkets throughout the country. It is therefore significant that the April 18, 1977 cover of Time is devoted not to a rock star but rather to the controversy surrounding the biological techniques known collectively as the recombinant DNA method. The article,¹ “Tinkering with Life,” indicates that, while still in its infancy, this method clearly has biological implications which rival the potential consequences of atomic technology because it provides the means for transferring genetic information freely between any two cells. Other articles and books have since appeared, with many bringing tales of unknown genetic horrors lurking in laboratories or in the planning stage. The controversy fed on these lurid monster stories and soon it became a media event which was battled everywhere from the Six O’Clock News to the halls of Congress. Time has removed some of the hysteria from the debate, but the consequences of the technology and of the debate itself are still pertinent and fascinating.