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Appetite is growing in Silicon Valley for the legally dubious and morally reprehensible practice of embryo editing. “The way to sell it to the world is through disease prevention… and showing that you can do it.” But it’s probably already done.
Despite legal prohibitions, several Silicon Valley entrepreneurs are pushing ahead with controversial technology. genetic editing of embryoswhich raises ethical concerns about the future of genetic enhancement and equitable access to biotechnology.
According to , two prominent startups are leading this charge of technological giants in the race to first baby drawn genetically.
based in California and backed by investors including the CEO of Coinbase, Brian Armstrongand the CEO of OpenAI, Sam Altmanwill have already allegedly identified potential customersalthough the company, whose motto is “preventing disease before birth”, denies this statement.
Also , co-founded by Cathy Tieformer beneficiary of the scholarship program of , and whom Nature calls ““, is advancing similar research from New York. Meanwhile, Tie has been training with…
The technology is based on gene editing tools which allow remove unwanted genetic traits of embryos, sperm or eggs.
Both companies promote this approach as an effective method of eliminate devastating genetic diseases such as sickle cell anemia, and potentially improve the immune systems of future generations. However, this practice faces significant legal obstacles.
US federal laws, which prohibit the editing of embryos us United States, restrict research fundingclinical approval for edited embryos, and even the use of federal facilities or equipment to conduct research in this area.
To circumvent these restrictions, companies are relocating their research out of the USA: Preventive is evaluating opportunities in the United Arab Emirates, while Manhattan Genomics plans to conduct research in Honduras.
This strategy allows US-based companies to serve North American customers while carrying out their technical procedures in more permissive jurisdictions.
At the moment, no country explicitly allows gene editing inheritance of embryos that results in births. Some nations, including China and the United Kingdom, enable research applications while strictly prohibiting reproductive use.
O only documented case of edited embryos occurred in China. In 2018, Chinese scientist He Jiankui claimed to have genetically manipulated the world — two twins, Lulu and Nana, whose DNA is said to have altered through technology capable of rewriting the ‘map of life’.
“Society will decide what to do next“, said the Chinese scientist at the time. Apparently, he decided to follow the law and .
In addition to legal barriers, the super-baby industry faces important scientific and ethical challenges.
Despite technological advances in the area, gene editing is still imprecise, and has the potential to result in unintended consequences that could harm rather than help the beneficiaries.
As he warns Arthur Caplanprofessor of bioethics at New York University, “you cannot kill or deform a baby just because it was hoped to make him a better violinist.”
In a future in which legal barriers and scientific concerns have been overcome, another concern would arise: the inequality of access to this technology.
The expensive procedures would likely be available only to wealthy families, potentially creating genetic advantages for elites economic while leaving others behind. This disparity could exacerbate existing social inequalities, through biological means.
Finally, many critics point out that the development of this technology is a slippery slope toward eugenia — set of widely discredited beliefs and practices that aim to improve the genetic quality of the human population.
According to the WSJ, Brian Armstrong suggested that Preventive conduct investigation in secret, and present the fait accompli: a genetically modified healthy baby that shocks the world and leads to acceptance of practice.
Armstrong’s representatives deny that the CEO of Coinbase made such a recommendation. But in fact, there is a non-zero probability that somewhere in a laboratory outside the USA, the world’s first super baby.
