The Ethical proprietaries of CRISPR-Cas
L. DEDROOG
Bachelor in de Farmaceutische en Biologische Laboratoriumtechnologie
OPO: Beroepsethiek
Academiejaar 2016-2017
UC Leuven – Limburg
Gezondheid en Welzijn • Campus Gasthuisberg
Herestraat 49 • 3000 Leuven 1. Introduction
Over the past decade there has been an enormous increase in high efficient techniques for studying the cell on a molecular level [1]. These techniques are responsible for a better understanding of the human body and the invention of a plethora of clinical treatments, ranging from cancer drugs to vaccinations [2].
Due to the increased knowledge of the human body, there should be asked what the ethical concerns might be of being able to have a surpassing
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This is done so the reader can have the fullest understanding of the concerns.
3.1 Modifying our children’s children
To exemplify this ethical aspects of CRISPR-Cas, we will view the application as a means of knocking out pathogenic genes in a fetus which might carries a heritable disease.
To knock out the pathogenic gene in a therapeutic way all cells must be affected, for this the right dosage of the nuclease (Cas9) must be administered. The delicate part is determining the right dosage; if the dosage is too low not all cells will be affected and the pathogenic gene may still be functional. On the other hand, if the dosage is too high the nuclease may cut unspecific and knock out required genes, which can even result in losing the life of the patient [3].
For this reason scientists tend to focus on modifying human embryos instead of somatic cells (after birth). In doing so the number of cells can be determined beforehand and the dose can easier be optimized. The method will be applied during in vitro fertilization, more specifically in the post fertilization period of the zygote, just before implantation in the mother. After the treatment with nuclease, the cells can be screened for the presence of the pathogen gene [8]. As a result the child will live free of the disease. Although this sounds very promising, the use of genetically modifying therapeutics on embryos awakens many ethical concerns.
The most conspicuous concern
CRISPR is a new gene-modifying tool that has the potential to treat numerous medical conditions by editing genes that are responsible for certain diseases. This technology is based on the ability of bacteria to destroy the DNA of invading viruses. Studies have suggested that this new technology can be applied to human cells, although the idea of chopping up regions of the human genome can be unethical and could even be harmful. In order for the treatment to be administered to a patient, a small piece of RNA and an enzyme that makes a cut in the DNA are delivered to the cells. A biotechnology company, known as Editas Medicine, located in Cambridge, MA, is already designing treatments for conditions of the blood and the eye using CRISPR. For
Human genetic engineering is one of the newest scientific breakthroughs allowing DNA that is considered “bad” to be replaced using CRISPR. Due to this new technology discovered, many scientists around the world have agreed on banning the practice of humans and embryos, after China first was able to partially succeed in using CRISPR on embryos. The topic of human engineering is very controversial on ethics but also the benefits of the outcome on human genetic engineering and the fast pace that it is going in. Mary Shelley explains in Frankenstein that scientific progress is advancing faster than the human knowledge of science and shows this when Victor creates the creation and how he deals with the creation afterwards. Scientists are careful about transgressing ethical boundaries in the name of progress so that humans should
Imagine a world with less cancer, diabetes, and infant mortality. Yet at the same time, imagine a messed up world with “fake” people. There are so many ups and downs with CRISPR that it has caused many uproars as to whether or not it is ethically right to conduct experiments with. With this technique, we could help lots of people across the world. Yet at the same time, we could screw up and ruin the world with this technique. We need to set a firm line as to whether or not CRISPR is ethical.
The author gives a brief history of past genome editing but thoroughly explains the history and mechanism of the CRISPR technology. She elaborates on how the technology has already been used to cure diseases and speculates on its future uses and regulation.
Due to CRISPR-Cas9’s low cost, global scientific research on genetic editing has flourished. The power of CRISPR “is so easily accessible by labs — you don 't need a very expensive piece of equipment and people don 't need to get many years of training to do this” (Ledford). Because of this, CRISPR technology has spread to labs across the globe. There are two main economic
These scientists only at the beginning of the procedure have already put a life at risk just to enhance the child. Along with this procedure is the scientists and engineers still do not know all of the possible side effects because it is unethical to make an embryo a science experiment. A journal with an entry titled ‘Against Designer Babies” written by Sheldon Krimsky states, “First, for whatever enhancement is sought, the only method for determining efficacy is to engage in a clinical trial with a few dozen fertilized human eggs or embryos, where half would be genetically modified, all would be carried to term, and the development of the children would be followed throughout their lives to determine whether the genetic modification worked and worked safely. No animal studies can answer these questions” (Krimsky). The experiment cannot be used on animals to answer the questions scientists have, and expect mothers to willingly let experiments to be done not only on themselves, but also the little life inside of
Reviewing the ethical dilemmas on this topic listed earlier, those with some type of religious background will most likely have a harder time accepting this new area of scientific development. Whereas, those who do not involve religious beliefs in their view point may see CRISPR as a revolutionary scientific discovery that will significantly benefit the greater good. Allowing CRISPR to be further research, and hopefully one day used, can greatly impact billions of people in such an amazing way. Living with an incurable disease or having the potential to develop one later on in life can be detrimental to not only the individual, but the individual’s family. Eliminating terminal genetic diseases will not only relieve people of pain and
Genetic engineering is the figurehead of the ethical concerns of scientists in the 21st century. Nothing is more engrossed with criticism and dislike than the idea of altering the baseline for living organisms. Many people are skeptical of genetic engineering due to the versatility it exhibits. A scientist could use a genetic editing tool, such as CRISPR, to remove the genes for a hereditary disease in an embryo, but they could also utilize it to alter the physical characteristics of a human baby. This thought provoked the flood gates of ethics to unleash a multitude of unanswered questions and concerns about the usage and further development of genetic engineering. The field of genetic engineering is
With the use of CRISPR, a specific gene in the genome of a cell can be targeted and mutated to rid of the preexisting mutation. The technique works through the use of an enzyme called Cas9, which acts as the “scissors” to cut two strands of DNA at a specific location in the genome to allow for pieces of DNA to be added or removed. Another molecule of use in the process is a piece of RNA called guide RNA (gRNA). Guide RNA comprises of a small piece of pre-designed RNA sequence located within a longer RNA strand. This longer RNA strand binds to DNA and the pre-designed sequence guides the Cas9 to the correct part of the genome. This occurs for the assurance that the Cas9 enzyme cuts the right part of the genome out. The article provides specific cancers and genetic diseases and the targets for CRISPR/Cas9 that act on these mutations. Amongst the cancers, lung, thyroid, and breast cancer was mentioned. The genetic diseases mentioned were Huntington disease, Alzheimer’s and muscular
CRISPR/Cas9 DNA editing system is a prokaryotic immune system that becomes resistant to foreign genetics such as plasmids. CRISPR stands for Clustered Regularly-Interspaced Short Palindromic Repeats, which are prokaryotic DNA strands that have a short repetition base sequence. Cas9 is a nuclease enzyme that is used to cut into DNA strands that are associated with CRISPR type II. CRISPR/Cas9 system has several advantages when using this technology in the biological and biomedical sciences. It also has a few disadvantages that cause concerns when using this system in the medicine field. However, before all of this can be discussed, a depth of what CRISPR/Cas9 is and where it comes from and why is it important to the biology field.
Imagine a world where we can control genetics. What if we had the opportunity to eliminate all genetic diseases in just a few steps. Imagine a society where anyone could flip through a catalog to shop for traits to “design” their child. This may seem a little far fetched, however this imagined world may soon become possible through the rapid advancing development of genetic engineering. New and advanced technology has finally made it possible to access and hack the human genome. New gene editing technology called CRISPR Cas-9 has completely transformed the biomedical field. CRISPR Cas-9 is cheap, precise, efficient and ultimately works on all living organisms. Advanced genetic technology that have allowed us to genetically modify our food and clone sheep, may one day give parents the option to modify their own children. However the idea of one day creating “designer babies” sparks great controversy.
CRISPR has been used on animals before but, the real question is should we use CRISPR on humans? According to the Board Institute CRISPR stand for Clustered Regularly Interspaced Short Palindromic Repeats, which are the hallmark of a bacterial defense system that forms the basis for CRISPR-Cas9 genome editing technology.
New technological advances and scientific methods continue to change the course of nature. One of the current controversial advances in science and technology is the use of genetically modified embryos in which the study exceeds stem cell research. Scientists have begun planning for research involving human embryos in the genetic modification field. Many technological developments are responsible for improving our living standards and even saving lives, but often such accomplishments have troubling cultural and moral ramifications (Reagan, 2015). We are already beyond the days in which virtually the only procreative option was for a man and a woman to conceive the old-fashioned way (Reagan, 2015). Genetic modification of human embryos can be perceived as a positive evolution in the medical process yet it is surrounded by controversy due to ethical processes. Because this form of genetic modification could affect later born children and their offspring, the protection of human subjects should be a priority in decisions about whether to proceed with such research (Dresser, 2004). The term Human Genetic Engineering was originally made public in 1970. During this time there were several methods biologists began to devise in order to better identify or isolate clone genes for manipulation in several species or mutating them in humans.
Although the idea of editing genes has been around for quite a while now, genome editing using CRISPR does this cheaper, quicker, with less error than ever before and can target very specific areas of the genome to change. CRISPR may be able to alter genetic defects in a person’s genome and therefore cure many hereditary illnesses like cystic fibrosis. The concern with genome editing in the future is that if scientists can eliminate genetic defects in an egg or embryo to cure a person of a genetic disease, then in theory, it is possible to create a ‘designer baby’, where hair colour, eye colour and perhaps things like height and intelligence are manipulated, which massively impacts
This essay addresses the question “In light of the recent developments with iPS cells, is the genetic modification of human embryos justified?”. New gene editing software CRISPR has created cheaper and more accurate modification, making the editing of an embryo a possibility. There are concerns about this advancement as it is the changing of our DNA, with this having ethical consequences that some judge as unacceptable. Recent experiments have also produced alternative use of this technology, such as on iPS cells which have the same properties as embryonic