Human Genetic Modification
Human genetic modification is the direct manipulation of the genome using molecular engineering techniques. Recently developed techniques for modifying genes are often called “gene editing.” Genetic modification can be applied in two very different ways: “somatic genetic modification” and “germline genetic modification.”
Somatic genetic modification adds, cuts, or changes the genes in some of the cells of an existing person, typically to alleviate a medical condition. These gene therapy techniques are approaching clinical practice, but only for a few conditions, and at a very high cost.
Germline genetic modification would change the genes in eggs, sperm, or early embryos. Often referred to as “inheritable genetic modification” or “gene editing for reproduction,” these alterations would appear in every cell of the person who developed from that gamete or embryo, and also in all subsequent generations. Germline modification has not been tried in humans, but it would be, by far, the most consequential type of genetic modification. If used for enhancement purposes, it could open the door to a new market-based form of eugenics. Human germline modification has been prohibited by law in more than 40 countries, and by a binding international treaty of the Council of Europe.
A very small study published in Nature Methods on May 29 found that supposedly precise gene editing may cause “...
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Methadone Mile is a stretch of road along Massachusetts Avenue that begins in the South End and stretches north to...
Human Gene Editing: A Timeline of CRISPR Cover Stories
Scientists, scholars, and social justice advocates have debated for decades about the prospect of modifying the traits we pass on to future generations. The controversy emerged well before the relevant science or technology was clearly in view, but took on new urgency in early 2015. In April of that year, researchers reported an experiment with nonviable human embryos using a new-generation genome editing tool known as CRISPR-Cas9. This research has sparked a media firestorm about engineering future children to have certain genetic factors "edited out" or "inserted in."
CRISPR gene editing is a "dual use" technology. Harnessed to help consenting patients, it may fulfill the promise of "gene therapy" for a range of diseases. But deploying CRISPR to create human babies with re-engineered genetic traits could open the door to new forms of social inequality, discrimination, and conflict. Efforts to genetically "enhance" future humans could usher us into an era of neo-eugenics – dictated not by an authoritarian regime, but by the commercial markets and consumer dynamics that favor the already privileged.
Learn more about CRISPR and human germline genetic modification:
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In the News Feed: "Inheritable Genetic Modification"
Since the debut of CRISPR, media coverage of "designer babies" has exploded, with a number of high-profile publications featuring the species-altering project on their covers and front pages. Here, we gather media highlights since early 2015, sprinkled with television appearances, public opinion polls, and editorial board statements about the prospect of gene editing for human reproduction.
View in chronological order, earliest first
A Timeline of CRISPR Cover Stories
September 1, 2016The September 2016 issue of Scientific American. "The Future: We are remaking our world and ourselves. What's next?" |
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The Human Experiment [feature] |
| #5. The First Tinkering with Human Heredity May Happen in the Infertility Clinic Stephen S. Hall |
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Links: #5. The First Tinkering with Human Heredity May Happen in the Infertility Clinic The Human Experiment
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August 10, 2016An illustrated video by Kurzgesagt is uploaded to YouTube and garners over two million views in just two days. |
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