Science and legal experts debate future uses and impact of human genome editing in Gender & the Genome

Precise, economical genome editing tools such as CRISPR have made it possible to make targeted changes in genes, which could be applied to human embryos to correct mutations, prevent disease, or alter traits. A panel of experts discusses the controversies related to the possibility of editing the human embryonic genome and creating man-made modifications that would be passed on to future generations, in a Roundtable Discussion published in Gender and the Genome, a new peer-reviewed journal from Mary Ann Liebert, Inc., publishers.

Journal Editor-in-Chief Marianne Legato, MD, PhD (hon. c.), FACP, Columbia University (New York, NY) moderated a lively and insightful discussion among distinguished panelists George Church, PhD, Harvard University and Massachusetts Institute of Technology (Cambridge, MA), Henry Greely, JD, Stanford University School of Law (CA), Tetsuya Ishii, PhD, Hokkaido University (Japan), Virginia Miller, PhD, Mayo Clinic (Rochester, MN), and Justin Killian, Esq and Sherif Moussa, Esq, both from Foundation for Gender-Specific Medicine (New York, NY).

The Roundtable Discussion is entitled "Editing the Human Genome: Progress and Controversies."

Among the scientific, societal, and legal implications of a future in which we may be able to modify the genetic makeup of human embryos, the Roundtable panelists discussed what a "balanced regulatory approach" to oversee the use of genome editing tools might look like, potential safety issues, the concept of using genome editing to make cosmetic choices for a prospective child, and the legal implications of parents' rights to manipulate the genome of an embryo.

"Our ability to manipulate the human genome is a paradigm shift that trumps Darwinian evolution," says Dr. Legato.

Provided by Mary Ann Liebert, Inc