In 2015, Jennifer Doudna, codeveloper of the CRISPR/Cas9 gene-editing technology, convened a meeting in Napa, Calif., aimed at setting the parameters for ethical use of the groundbreaking genomic technique. Her template for the proceedings was a meeting of scientists that...
Bioethics
Bioethics is concerned with the ethical and philosophical implications of biological and medical research, procedures, technologies, and treatments. Areas of concern range from informed consent, patient safety, and conflicts of interest to the broader social and political meanings of biotechnologies. Some critics have suggested that bioethicists too often provide justifications for questionable scientific experiments, and that their focus on doctor-patient and researcher-subject relationships tends to obscure broader social concerns. Others have accused bioethicists of placing unnecessary obstacles in the way of scientific investigations. Nonetheless, some scientists are increasingly asking for ethical input at early stages of their research to anticipate potential ethical problems.
Aggregated News
Scientists say they have taken a potentially important — and possibly controversial — step toward creating human eggs in a...
Biopolitical Times
On August 13, 2018, Molecular Therapy published a report (Open Access) that explicitly “suggests the efficiency and genetic safety of correcting a Marfan syndrome (MFS) pathogenic mutation in embryos by base editing.” That is, another step toward the plausible possibility of germline intervention: heritable human genetic modification.
