Ethics of genome editing: Avoiding false equivalencies
(02/25/19 5:00am)
Centuries from now, history will likely associate 2018 with the birth of the first genome-edited babies. This event, disclosed in November by Dr. He Jiankui from China, dragged humanity further into a murky ethical quagmire surrounding human embryonic germline editing. I stand with the vast majority of my colleagues in the scientific community who believe that that the experiment revealed in November was ethically inappropriate, lacked medical merit and failed to conform to international norms. However, despite this deeply flawed example of human germline experimentation, increasing investments and research can benefit our society. Proper use of genome editing can feed millions, treat cancer and alleviate suffering.