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Can Genetic Editing Fundamentally Change Who You Are?

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We hear it every day: the phrase "it's genetic" when referring to qualities such as a person's beauty, intelligence and athletic prowess as well as afflictions like cancer, Alzheimer's disease and muscular dystrophy.

But what if a person doesn't have to stick with their genes? What if a person's genetic code can be changed and passed down to future generations?

Scientists say that exact technology now exists. That scientific advancement was the subject of the International Summit On Human Gene Editing in Washington, D.C., earlier this month. The summit drew scientists from around the world, including Francoise Baylis, professor of Bioethics at Canada's Dalhousie University.

"It's really important to be clear about what are the positive, potential outcomes," she said. "And where is there risk of going down a pathway that we will at some point, perhaps regret."

Similar to cut-and-paste computer software, the most recently developed methods allows scientists to target precisely abnormal genes inside cells, replacing them with healthy ones.

It can be used in reproductive cells: sperm, egg and embryos. And those changes can be passed on to children, both to cure disease and for non-medical reasons such as to change a person's eye color for cosmetic reasons, creating what's commonly known as "designer babies."

Chad Cowan, a Harvard University biologist, said changing a person's genetic code for non-medical reasons is generally frowned upon within the scientific community.

"Germ-line editing, or changes that might enhance future generations, in those areas it's difficult to prevent those experiments from happening," he explained.

"But what you can as a community is set clear guidelines about what would be an acceptable experiment and what would be an unacceptable experiment and to not let those people who perform unacceptable biological experiments get away without some form of regulation or punishment," he said.

Baylis noted the idea of engineering "designer babies" is more difficult than many think.

"People start talking about eye color, hair color. Sometimes people start talking about things like memory enhancement or muscle mass and I think we need to be careful about that," she continued.

"Because quite frankly some of that involves very, very complicated science in terms of the numbers of genes you'd have to manipulate, etcetera," she explained. "And at least for now that's not the game, so to speak, that's not the target."

"The target really is therapeutic interventions. We're looking to try to make a difference in the lives of people who actually have genetic diseases," she said.

The latest gene editing technology has the potential to be accomplished on a wide-scale basis because it can be done in most modern laboratories at a relatively low cost.

Scientists at the conference formed a consensus that the worldwide biological community of professionals needs to agree on uniform legal and ethical guidelines and standards regarding genetic editing.

The method has the potential to reduce human suffering, but could also carry with it unintended and unforseeable consequences.

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About The Author

Lorie Johnson
Lorie
Johnson

As CBN’s Senior Medical Reporter, Lorie Johnson reports on the latest information about medicine and wellness. Her goal is to provide information that will inspire people to make healthy choices. She joined CBN in 2008 and has interviewed some of the world's leading doctors and researchers from The Mayo Clinic, Cleveland Clinic, Johns Hopkins, Duke, and more. She kept viewers up to date throughout the COVID-19 pandemic with regular appearances onThe 700 Club, Faith Nation, and Newswatch. She has reported on many ground-breaking medical advancements, including the four-part series, Build a