Gene Editing of Human Embryos – More Ethical Questions to Answer
By Dr Calum MacKellar,
BioNews
| 05. 11. 2015
Untitled Document
The short article by Robin Lovell-Badge entitled 'Editing human embryos' (see BioNews 799) addressing the work of Junjiu Huang and colleagues in China (1) on gene editing in human embryo - such as the use of the CRISPR/Cas9 system - raises a number of ethical questions (2). In this procedure, variants of genes are edited by removing or inserting genetic material into a developing embryo in order to see whether this could address a genetic disorder.
However, before such gene editing can be used in human reproduction, a number of biomedical challenges need to be addressed. For example, inserting or deleting specific DNA in the right place of the genome of a developing embryo without upsetting the biological equilibrium of cell is a difficult operation. A given gene may influence a number of different characteristics, which means that even if it were modified to influence a one dysfunction, this might give rise to unexpected consequences elsewhere. The overall result could be a modification that is actually harmful (3).
Read more...
Related Articles
CGS is excited to announce the launch of a new anti-eugenics initiative that has been years in the making. Legacies of Eugenics in Science, Medicine, and Technology kicks off with a monthly essay series published at the Los Angeles Review of Books that will expose and contest the reemergence of eugenic ideas in contemporary health sciences, human biotechnology, public health, and medicine. Community and campus-based events featuring the authors are also being planned. The project is a collaboration among CGS...
By Jason Kehe, Wired | 04.11.2024
God help the babies! Or, absent God, a fertility startup called Orchid. It offers prospective parents a fantastical choice: Have a regular baby or have an Orchid baby. A regular baby might grow up and get cancer. Or be born...
By Neel Shah, The Preprint | 04.11.2024
Years ago, I interviewed for a residency position at The Johns Hopkins Hospital in Baltimore. Standing before the domed Victorian building at the campus entrance, I couldn’t help but be in awe of the history of the place, the great...
By Eleanor Hayward and Joanna Crawford, The Times | 03.29.2024
Gazing out at the Mediterranean from an idyllic rocky mountaintop, Sophie Hermann announced to her half a million Instagram followers that she had decided to freeze her eggs. Since that post in August, the 37-year-old former Made in Chelsea star...