Someone broke into a church in Centerville, Utah, last November and attacked the organist who was practicing there. In March, after a conventional investigation came up empty, a police detective turned to forensic consultants at Parabon NanoLabs. Using the publicly accessible website GEDmatch, the consultants found a likely distant genetic relative of the suspect, whose blood sample had been found near the church’s broken window.
If you follow news about human germline editing — altering the genes and traits of future generations — you’re likely familiar with the name Denis Rebrikov. The Russian molecular biologist, who has ties to both research facilities and fertility clinics, has publicly declared his intention to become the second scientist to use CRISPR technology to alter the genomes of human embryos, establish pregnancies, and bring the resulting babies to term. While he originally said he planned to target the CCR5...
On July 15, Senators Dianne Feinstein (D-CA), Marco Rubio (R-FL), and Jack Reed (D-RI) introduced a bipartisan resolution calling for the creation of international ethical standards for gene-editing research.
The Center for Genetics and Society welcomes the introduction of this resolution, which highlights the importance of international cooperation and broadly inclusive public deliberation in making the consequential decision about whether to allow heritable genome editing.
“The timing is key,” said CGS’ Executive Director Marcy Darnovsky. “Just last month, a second...
Canadian bioethicists and genetics experts are speaking out against Denis Rebrikov, the Russian molecular biologist who plans — in defiance of international scientific norms — to alter human embryos using CRISPR gene-editing technology to allow prospective parents with genetic deafness...
Editors note: This article was originally published on impactethics.ca and is reposted here with generous permission from Impact Ethics.
In November 2018, the world learned that a Chinese biophysicist, He Jiankui, had used CRISPR genome editing technology to manipulate the genomes of two children prior to their birth to make them immune to HIV infection. This was followed by almost universal condemnation and calls for a global moratorium. But it was entirely predictable that before too long there would be...
