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utsfl:classroom:seminars:pba201h [2017/07/11 15:50] – mmccann | utsfl:classroom:seminars:pba201h [2023/12/01 09:10] (current) – [Primitive Streak & Twinning] mmccann | ||
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====== PBA201H: The Biology of Prenatal Human Development ====== | ====== PBA201H: The Biology of Prenatal Human Development ====== | ||
- | * [[http://www.ehd.org/|EHD]] DVD / TED Talk / EvilCatProductions video | + | Video (15min cut of EHD documentary): |
- | * some facts and milestones about development (e.g. heartbeat, viability) | + | http://media.trtl.ca/tablet/ehd_med.m4v |
- | * Maybe introduce fetal origins (Annie Murphy Paul): | + | OR [[https:// |
- | | + | |
- | ===== CCBR Embryology Presentation ===== | + | < |
- | * FIXME **Embryology presentation used by CCBR** | + | |
- | * From Oriyana Hrycyshyn (can sub in name of any child for her sister Inessa) | + | |
- | * approx. 45 min, covers all the major milestones of prenatal development + leaves time for questions/practice | + | |
- | * Link to Google Doc of notes: https:// | + | |
- | + | ||
- | * Intro: close your eyes, imagine that you're in a small, dark, enclosed place, and you can only communicate with the outside world with a small cord. | + | |
- | * Not talking about being in the womb, but the Chilean miners crisis | + | |
- | * SLED | + | |
- | + | ||
- | + | ||
- | ===== Prenatal Development: | + | |
- | + | ||
- | * Timeline (FIXME visual) | + | |
- | * [[wp> | + | |
- | * [[wp> | + | |
- | * [[wp> | + | |
- | * [[wp>fetus]]: 8 weeks until birth | + | |
===== When does human life begin? ===== | ===== When does human life begin? ===== | ||
- | ====Fertilization ==== | + | ==== Fertilization ==== |
* As we learned in [[PBA100Y]], | * As we learned in [[PBA100Y]], | ||
- | | + | |
- | * Sperm-egg fusion: A mature egg will leave the ovary and the sperm that travels through the Fallopian tube will fuse with the egg; the first sperm that fuses, uses the enzymes to crack through the outer layer (zona pellucida) of the egg and fuse with the inner membrane; then, there' | + | |
+ | > "This brand new embryo contains the original copy of a **new individual’s complete genetic code**. Gender, eye color, and other traits are determined at conception, also known as fertilization." | ||
+ | |||
+ | * **How does sperm-egg fusion | ||
+ | * | ||
< | < | ||
Line 39: | Line 25: | ||
* **Four Principles**: | * **Four Principles**: | ||
- Unique: | - Unique: | ||
- | - The genetic code of the zygote is unique, distinct from the mother and father | + | - The genetic code of the zygote is unique--distinct from those of the mother and father. For instance, a pregnant |
- | - Illustrate: A woman could be pregnant with a male zyogote = different DNA | + | |
- Whole: | - Whole: | ||
- | * Illustrate: | + | * Some may ask what makes a single-celled zygote |
- | * Illustrate [[https://prolifetraining.com/resources/five-minute-10/ | + | * //Nothing is added// to the embryo from the time of fertilization except adequate nutrition and a proper environment, |
- Living: | - Living: | ||
- | - Law of Biogenesis: | + | - If something is growing, isn't it alive? |
- | - If the pre-born child // | + | - We know from the law of biogenesis that living things come from other living things. |
- Human: | - Human: | ||
- If someone has human parents, aren't they human offspring? | - If someone has human parents, aren't they human offspring? | ||
- | * **Cellular | + | * **Cellular |
- | * While the zygote is a very young individual composed of only one cell, that one cell is substantively different from the sperm cell or egg cell. We can see this by considering the criteria science uses to distinguish between different cell types: cell **composition** and **behavior**. In other words, what the cell is made up of and what it does. | + | * While the zygote is a very young individual composed of only one cell, that one cell is substantively different from the sperm cell or egg cell. We can see this by considering the criteria science uses to distinguish between different cell types: cell //composition// and //behavior//. In other words, what the cell is //made up of//, and what it //does//. |
- | * Composition: | + | |
- | * Behaviour: And where the behavior of sperm and egg is to penetrate or be penetrated (respectively), | + | |
< | < | ||
- | Let's set aside for a moment the question of abortion, of whether or not it destroys a human life. Let's instead look at when we want to //create// a new human life. Imagine | + | Let's set aside for a moment the question of abortion, of whether or not it destroys a human life. Let's instead look at when we want to //create// a new human life. Imagine that a fertility specialist((FIXME terminology? |
- | Would you do in-vitro...implantation? | + | Would she do in-vitro...implantation? |
**Think about it:** Pregnancy is typically 9 months long. 9 months starting when? At fertilization! </ | **Think about it:** Pregnancy is typically 9 months long. 9 months starting when? At fertilization! </ | ||
+ | ===== Developmental Milestones ===== | ||
- | | + | ==== Developmental Timeline ==== |
- | * cardio-pulmonary death is the legally recognized point | + | |
- | | + | * The first eight weeks of a pre-born child' |
- | * fertilization | + | * The embryonic period |
- | === Implantation? | + | |
- | http://www.unmaskingchoice.ca/training/ | + | > "Most significant **developmental milestones** occur long before birth **during the first eight weeks following conception** when most body parts and all body systems appear and begin to function. The main divisions of the body, such as the head, chest, abdomen and pelvis, and arms and legs are established by about four weeks after conception. Eight weeks after conception, except for the small size, the developing human’s overall appearance and many internal structures closely resemble the newborn." |
- | === Twinning? === | + | * Within the embryonic period, there are further subdivisions depending on the embryo' |
+ | * At fertilization, | ||
+ | * By day 3, the embryo is spherically-shaped and consists of 12 to 16 cells. She's called a **morula** (Latin for " | ||
+ | * Between 4 and 5 days after fertilization, | ||
- | https://www.endthekilling.ca/training/classroom/science/twinning | + | ==== Implantation ==== |
+ | |||
+ | FIXME condense | ||
+ | * Implantation starts at the end of the first week after fertilization, | ||
+ | * Admittedly, most pregnancy tests will only read positive after implantation; | ||
+ | * But the fact that a pregnancy test doesn’t come back positive pre-implantation doesn’t mean life isn’t there—it just means the test's ability to detect that life isn’t there. | ||
+ | * Take, for example, the commonly used hCG pregnancy test, one which looks for Human Chorionic Gonadotropin in a woman’s urine. hCG is a hormone that is secreted by the developing placenta, and this occurs at implantation. | ||
+ | * The release of hCG indicates the presence of the pre-born child, but it doesn’t mean she didn’t exist prior to that. We know this intuitively, | ||
+ | * Likewise, one’s offspring first exists at fertilization even if we don’t discover her existence until implantation. | ||
+ | |||
+ | ==== Primitive Streak & Twinning ==== | ||
+ | |||
+ | * At approximatly 14 days after fertilization((https://bioethicsarchive.georgetown.edu/pcbe/reports/cloningreport/research.html)), | ||
+ | * Before this point, it is possible for identical | ||
+ | * Just because some humans have the ability to split into two, doesn’t mean that prior to the split one human didn’t exist. | ||
+ | * Take the case of the flatworm.((" | ||
+ | * Likewise, even though in rare situations one human splits into two, one human existed before that split happened, and the beginning of that one human was still at fertilization. | ||
+ | |||
+ | ERI Video on this: https:// | ||
- | ===== Developmental Milestones ===== | ||
==== Heartbeat ==== | ==== Heartbeat ==== | ||
+ | * The embryo' | ||
+ | |||
+ | {{ : | ||
+ | |||
+ | **Embed** video in actual CCBR website (can embed EHD videos w/o permission): | ||
==== Brain ==== | ==== Brain ==== | ||
+ | * A pre-born child' | ||
- | ==== Pain ==== | + | < |
+ | **What about cognitive development?: | ||
- | Determining precisely when the pre-born | + | An abortion advocate may argue that a pre-born |
+ | |||
+ | {{: | ||
+ | |||
+ | </ | ||
+ | |||
+ | ==== Pain ==== | ||
{{ : | {{ : | ||
- | Consider [[http:// | ||
+ | * Determining precisely when the pre-born feel pain is largely dependent on technology to detect this. While it is an interesting topic, it has no bearing on the morality of abortion. After all, is it wrong to kill someone because she feels pain or because she’s human? | ||
+ | |||
+ | * Consider [[http:// | ||
+ | * May we kill her because of her inability to feel pain? Why then may we kill the pre-born because they don't feel pain at certain points during pregnancy? | ||
+ | * To make the point even more simply: would it be permissible to kill a 3-year-old boy as long as we give him anaesthetic first? | ||
- | To make the point even more simply: would it be permissible | + | FIXME Giving analgesics for fetal surgeries seems to be commonplace, |
+ | [[https:// | ||
+ | " | ||
==== Viability ==== | ==== Viability ==== | ||
+ | * The term " | ||
- | http:// | + | > "By 21 to 22 weeks after fertilization, |
+ | |||
+ | * Some will argue that a human being' | ||
+ | * Furthermore, | ||
+ | * Lastly, a pre-born child is always viable if in the right // | ||
+ | * FIXME confusing viability and vitality, the difference between being able to survive and being alive | ||
===== Common Objections ===== | ===== Common Objections ===== | ||
- | "just a blob of tissue, clump of cells, etc." | ||
- | "many babies die by miscarriage so how is abortion wrong" | ||
- | "a parasite" | ||
- | * http:// | ||
- | * [[wp> | ||
- | " | + | **"A fetus is just a blob of tissue, just a clump of cells."** |
+ | * Terms like "blob of tissue", | ||
+ | * Although a pre-born child is less developed than older humans, she is still a [[PBA100Y|human being with human rights]], regardless of her developmental level. | ||
- | | + | |
+ | **"It doesn' | ||
+ | |||
+ | {{ : | ||
+ | * Pre-born children also look different from born children; a zygote looks different from a 10-week-old fetus, who looks different from a toddler, etc. | ||
+ | * But how would we expect a human being of that specific age to look? For instance, we would not expect a toddler to undergo the same body changes that a teenager undergoes during puberty. Pre-born children look exactly the way they are supposed to look for their age and level of development. | ||
+ | * Richard Stith offers the following analogy((https:// | ||
+ | |||
+ | **"So many embryos miscarry anyway, so what's the big deal about abortion?" | ||
+ | |||
+ | * Some abortion advocates point out that the rate of miscarriage is high in the first trimester of pregnancy, and some women miscarry without ever knowing that they were pregnant. They argue that this is evidence that pre-born children have little significance, | ||
+ | * It is true that some children die naturally, through miscarriage. However, how would this fact justify abortion? If some children tragically die naturally during pregnancy, how would this make it permissible to kill other children intentionally? | ||
+ | * As an analogy, if one person dies of a heart attack, would that make it permissible to kill another person by stabbing him in the heart? | ||
+ | |||
+ | **"A fetus isn’t human, it’s just a parasite feeding off of a woman’s body!" | ||
+ | |||
+ | * While a fetus does require nutrients from her mother via the umbilical cord in order to survive, it is unscientific to call the fetus a parasite. By definition, a parasite must be of a **different species** than the host organism--for example, a flea on a dog. Since a fetus and her mother are of the same species – the human species -- it doesn’t make sense to call her a parasite. | ||
+ | |||
+ | **"An embryo is basically a tumour feeding off the mother' | ||
+ | * Some will compare a pre-born child to a tumour, since both are growing groups of cells. | ||
+ | * A tumour occurs when cells from a person' | ||
+ | * The human embryo, in contrast, has her own unique genetic code that differs from that of her mother. The cells of //her// body will proliferate in a controlled, coordinated manner (leading to the various developmental milestones listed above). | ||
+ | * Ultimately, this is an anti-science comparison that we can know intuitively to be untrue. If you have one friend who has just gotten a positive // | ||
+ | |||
+ | ===== Conclusion ===== | ||
+ | |||
+ | Biology textbooks, embryology studies, and medical advancements continue to confirm what we already know: pre-born children are living human beings from fertilization onward. By advocating for the legal protection of the pre-born, pro-lifers are simply advocating for [[https:// | ||
+ | |||
+ | ===== Other Links ===== | ||
+ | |||
+ | * Maybe introduce fetal origins (Annie Murphy Paul): [[https:// | ||
+ | * https:// | ||
+ | * https:// | ||
+ | |||
+ | |||
+ | **Embryology presentation used by CCBR** | ||
+ | * From Oriyana Hrycyshyn (can sub in name of any child for her sister Inessa) | ||
+ | * approx. 45 min, covers all the major milestones of prenatal development + leaves time for questions/ | ||
+ | * Link to Google Doc of notes: https:// | ||
+ | * https:// | ||
- | FIXME condensed version of the rest of Oriyana' |