A new piece by contributor Art Caplan in Forbes:
Bet you did not know that today is National DNA Day. It is. But before we all begin to party over our biological programming, remember this is also the day when the world is trying to figure out how to respond to a paper from a team of scientists in China stating that they tried to alter the genomes of human embryos using a new technique known as CRISPR.
Without getting bogged down in the details, CRISPR it is a new powerful tool that permits editing or clipping out segments of DNA and inserting novel genetic material. The Chinese group used it for the first time in human embryos, thereby taking a baby step across the line to trying out a technology that someday could be used to change the DNA of our descendants to repair genetic diseases, get rid of traits we don’t like or to try and build better, improved babies. Yes, that is the low moan of eugenics you hear in the background of this CRISPR experiment. Happy National DNA Day to you, too. […]
Read the full article here.