Self-Motivation
David Goggins
Former Navy Seal
Career Development
Bryan Cranston
Actor
Critical Thinking
Liv Boeree
International Poker Champion
Emotional Intelligence
Amaryllis Fox
Former CIA Clandestine Operative
Management
Chris Hadfield
Retired Canadian Astronaut & Author
Learn
from the world's big
thinkers
Start Learningfrom the world's big
thinkers
4 key questions to challenge your views on genetic engineering
New research shows how Americans feel about genetic engineering, human enhancement and automation.
23 February, 2020
Adobe stock.
- A review of Pew Research studies reveals the views of Americans on the role of science in society.
- 4 key questions were asked to gauge feelings on genetic engineering, automation and human enhancement.
- Americans are split in how they view technology and many worry about its growing role.
<p><br></p></div>
<p>The Pew Research Center published a fascinating roundup of studies that revealed the opinions of the U.S. public on a number of key science-related issues. The researchers wanted to find out what people thought overall about the role of science and scientists in society, but also to see more specifically how far modern humans are willing to go with genetic engineering and automation. </p><p>The <a href="https://www.pewresearch.org/fact-tank/2020/02/12/key-findings-about-americans-confidence-in-science-and-their-views-on-scientists-role-in-society/" target="_blank">responses show</a> that people are generally not as worried as you'd think about messing with human genetics but when it comes to implanting technology to enhance bodies, doubts proliferate. A strong uneasiness also pervades responses dealing with robots in workplaces. </p><p>Before you know the details of what others thought, however, you have a chance to take the quiz yourself to test your own points of view on these matters.</p>
<p>These first two questions relate to your stance on <strong>genetic engineering. </strong>With the advent of CRISPR gene editing techniques, it now seems possible to edit out mutations and create babies without disease. Wouldn't you want to do it? Or do you see the potential for horrendous accidents, genetic deformities, creation of second-class citizens and forever changing what it means to be human?</p><p><em>1. Changing a baby's genetic characteristics to reduce the risk of a serious illness that could occur over their lifetime is:</em></p><p>- An appropriate use of medical technology </p><p>- Taking medical technology too far</p>
<span style="display:block;position:relative;padding-top:56.25%;" class="rm-shortcode" data-rm-shortcode-id="49dbf04bfbffc1e18231f69fc529de15"><iframe type="lazy-iframe" data-runner-src="https://www.youtube.com/embed/6tw_JVz_IEc?rel=0" width="100%" height="auto" frameborder="0" scrolling="no" style="position:absolute;top:0;left:0;width:100%;height:100%;"></iframe></span>
<p>Another key question concerns growing human organs in other animals. Obviously, we have used animals for testing to develop new treatments already amid changing public attitudes about the cruelty involved, so how ethical is it to use animals simply as incubators of spare body parts?</p><p><em>2. Genetic engineering of animals to grow organs / tissues for humans needing a transplant is:</em></p><p>- An appropriate use of medical technology </p><p>- Taking medical technology too far</p>
<span style="display:block;position:relative;padding-top:56.25%;" class="rm-shortcode" data-rm-shortcode-id="776f6763c8d018c894df1ccf474eef4c"><iframe type="lazy-iframe" data-runner-src="https://www.youtube.com/embed/Yh6rTKNwBJY?rel=0" width="100%" height="auto" frameborder="0" scrolling="no" style="position:absolute;top:0;left:0;width:100%;height:100%;"></iframe></span>
<p>This next question pertains to <strong>human enhancement. </strong>How comfortable would you be outfitting yourself with digital chips or other prosthetics and modifications? Famously, Elon Musk is spearheading the development of Neuralink technology that would allow human brains to control machines. In a <a href="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=r-vbh3t7WVI&feature=youtu.be" target="_blank">2019 presentation</a>, he described the possibility that such devices would be made to work by first making holes in people's skulls with lasers, followed by feeding flexible electrode threads into the brain. He previously <a href="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=smK9dgdTl40&feature=youtu.be" target="_blank">promised</a> that such devices would not only give people additional abilities but can also cure brain illnesses like schizophrenia. Recently, <a href="https://twitter.com/elonmusk/status/1224195776131272704" target="_blank">he tweeted</a> an "awesome" update to the tech is coming, sharing also that it might be implanted in humans as early as this year.</p><p>Would you put one of these things on? See how you would answer this:</p><p><em>3. I am ____________________ about the possibility of a brain chip implant for a much improved ability to concentrate and process information.</em></p><p>- Very/somewhat worried</p><p>- Not too / not at all worried</p>
Watch Elon Musk’s presentation on Neuralink here:
<span style="display:block;position:relative;padding-top:56.25%;" class="rm-shortcode" data-rm-shortcode-id="a646a0b439db89b498836659049faf35"><iframe type="lazy-iframe" data-runner-src="https://www.youtube.com/embed/lA77zsJ31nA?rel=0" width="100%" height="auto" frameborder="0" scrolling="no" style="position:absolute;top:0;left:0;width:100%;height:100%;"></iframe></span><p><span style="background-color: initial;">And now for your thoughts on <strong>automation</strong>. Numerous studies have found that not only is automation coming faster than you think, it's bound to replace <a href="https://bigthink.com/paul-ratner/heres-when-machines-will-take-your-job-predict-ai-gurus" target="_self">the vast majority</a> of human occupations in the next 10-30 years. And it sounds like there's still time left, a <a href="https://go.forrester.com/blogs/predictions-2020-automation/" target="_blank">2020 study</a> by the research company Forrester shows that job loss due to automation is already very much here. They predict that more than <strong>1 million</strong> "</span><span style="background-color: initial;">knowledge-work jobs" will be taken over in 2020 by software robotics, virtual agents, chatbots and decisions based on machine-learning. On the other hand, the firm estimates</span> that <strong>331,500 </strong>net jobs will be added this year to the American workforce alone that are <strong>"human-touch jobs"</strong> utilizing such human qualities as intuition, empathy, and both physical and mental agility. So there's hope humans can adapt and find new things to do once technology takes over.</p><p>Here's your chance to answer for yourself: </p><p><em>4. The automation of jobs through new technology in the workplace has ___________ American workers.</em></p><p>- Mostly helped </p><p>- Mostly hurt</p><p>- Neither helped nor hurt.</p><p>If you're interested what the participants in the Pew Research polls thought, here is the breakdown:</p>
<img type="lazy-image" data-runner-src="https://assets.rebelmouse.io/eyJhbGciOiJIUzI1NiIsInR5cCI6IkpXVCJ9.eyJpbWFnZSI6Imh0dHBzOi8vYXNzZXRzLnJibC5tcy8yMjc4NDg4My9vcmlnaW4ucG5nIiwiZXhwaXJlc19hdCI6MTYwMzczNDQxN30.goT61GMeO6JzOxHgdMciGdJYaXq5bo4Q2Yv_2Y9uX7o/img.png?width=980" id="07947" class="rm-shortcode" data-rm-shortcode-id="f38d572619db1c08a0742e39d3870600" data-rm-shortcode-name="rebelmouse-image" />
<p>The Pew Research Center, which carried out the <a href="https://www.pewresearch.org/fact-tank/2020/02/12/key-findings-about-americans-confidence-in-science-and-their-views-on-scientists-role-in-society/" target="_blank">study</a>, pinpointed a specific theme in the findings, citing "the loss of human control, especially if such developments would be at odds with personal, religious and ethical values" as the key source of hesitancy when people think about future technologies. Proposals that give people more control over tech met with more positive response. </p>
Keep reading
Show less
Chinese scientist gets jail for rogue gene editing
A punishment is handed down for performing shocking research on human embryos.
31 December, 2019
Image source: vchal/arek_malang/Shutterstock/Big Think
- In November 2018, a Chinese scientist claimed he'd flouted ethics and the law to edit genes in human embryos.
- Other Chinese scientists call He Jiankui's research "crazy."
- Three gene-modified babies are now living in China, future uncertain.
<p>The scientific community has been proceeding with caution as it explores the potential of gene editing. The high risk of unintended consequences, both immediate and long-term, has prompted reticence regarding experimentation with humans. And then there's <a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/He_Jiankui" target="_blank">He Jiankui</a>, who <a href="https://www.theguardian.com/science/2018/nov/26/worlds-first-gene-edited-babies-created-in-china-claims-scientist" target="_blank">announced in 2018</a> that he'd genetically modified two human embryos, twin sisters, "Lulu" and "Nana," born in October of that year. Last week, a Chinese court sentenced He to three years in jail and a fine of three million Chinese yuan, about $430,000, for engaging in "illegal medical practices." The court also confirmed rumors that He had modified the genome of a <a href="https://futurism.com/neoscope/china-confirms-birth-third-gene-edited-baby" target="_blank">third child</a>, likely born in June or July 2019.</p>
He's experiments
<img type="lazy-image" data-runner-src="https://assets.rebelmouse.io/eyJhbGciOiJIUzI1NiIsInR5cCI6IkpXVCJ9.eyJpbWFnZSI6Imh0dHBzOi8vYXNzZXRzLnJibC5tcy8yMjI2NTE1Ny9vcmlnaW4uanBnIiwiZXhwaXJlc19hdCI6MTYyNjE0MDI2Mn0.pD6za00yORg0ZH6nk0RJLh3SBOzed7uc1oh9yZDe3tc/img.jpg?width=980" id="98186" class="rm-shortcode" data-rm-shortcode-id="5a306efb5afbd1a936315f28134a8417" data-rm-shortcode-name="rebelmouse-image" />He tells the world
Image source: Anthony Wallace/Getty
<p>When He first announced his research in November 2018 at the Second International Summit on Human Genome Editing in Hong Kong, the scientific community was stunned at this deliberate flaunting of scientific consensus and Chinese law. A <a href="https://www.yicai.com/news/100067069.html" target="_blank">statement</a> from 122 Chinese scientists referred to He's work as "crazy" and called it "a huge blow to the global reputation and development of Chinese science."</p><p>He, an associate professor at Southern University of Science and Technology in Shenzhen, China, claimed to have used CRISPR-cas9 in an attempt to provide embryos with immunity to HIV. The DNA in 16 embryos was altered, and 11 of these were used in six implant attempts that eventually led to the successful pregnancy of three infants. </p><p>After the announcement, Julian Savulescu of University of Oxford told <a href="https://www.theguardian.com/science/2018/nov/26/worlds-first-gene-edited-babies-created-in-china-claims-scientist" target="_blank"><em>The Guardian</em></a>, "If true, this experiment is monstrous," adding that, "There are many effective ways to prevent HIV in healthy individuals: for example, protected sex. And there are effective treatments if one does contract it. This experiment exposes healthy normal children to risks of gene editing for no real necessary benefit." While there <em>are</em> <a href="https://www.avert.org/professionals/hiv-around-world/asia-pacific/china" target="_blank">HIV infections in China</a>, there was no indication that the embryos had been infected.</p><p>In his announcement, He claimed to have inserted a mutated form of the CCR5 gene into the embryos' genome, a particular mutation that makes a small number of people immune to HIV. <a href="https://www.theguardian.com/science/2018/nov/26/worlds-first-gene-edited-babies-created-in-china-claims-scientist" target="_blank">According to</a> Kiran Musunuru of University of Pennsylvania, though, the mutation has a nasty downside: People who have it are at higher risk of contracting other, non-HIV viruses, and of dying of the flu. So, while potentially shielding his subjects from HIV, He was, in essence, consigning them to a lifetime of enhanced vulnerability to all sorts of more common infections.</p><p>It's likely, however, that He never actually produced or inserted the CCR5 mutation in any event. Excerpts of He's documentation published in <a href="https://www.technologyreview.com/s/614764/chinas-crispr-babies-read-exclusive-excerpts-he-jiankui-paper/" target="_blank"><em>MIT Technology Review</em></a> suggest that what He created were some new kinds of CCR5 mutations, as well as unintended gene mutations elsewhere in the genome, and the effect of all of these edits are anyone's guess. After reviewing the excerpts, University of California, Berkeley's Fyodor Urnov <a href="https://www.theguardian.com/science/2018/nov/26/worlds-first-gene-edited-babies-created-in-china-claims-scientist" target="_blank">concluded</a> He's claim was "a deliberate falsehood."</p>What the court said
<img type="lazy-image" data-runner-src="https://assets.rebelmouse.io/eyJhbGciOiJIUzI1NiIsInR5cCI6IkpXVCJ9.eyJpbWFnZSI6Imh0dHBzOi8vYXNzZXRzLnJibC5tcy8yMjI2NTU5NS9vcmlnaW4uanBnIiwiZXhwaXJlc19hdCI6MTY0MzkyOTExM30.W-iOUnHs0lXu59_5Wqq6ACnLouuscxg4dr-ySfS1pjg/img.jpg?width=980" id="03f5e" class="rm-shortcode" data-rm-shortcode-id="0ce199d4f8ebb8abea1a6b9b2341146e" data-rm-shortcode-name="rebelmouse-image" />He Jiankui and his genetic research team
Image source: VCG/Getty
<p>Two of He's colleagues involved in the research were also convicted by the Shenzhen court. According to Chinese news outlet <em>Xinhua</em>, the court found:</p><p style="margin-left: 20px;"><em>"The three accused did not have the proper certification to practice medicine, and in seeking fame and wealth, deliberately violated national regulations in scientific research and medical treatment. They've crossed the bottom line of ethics in scientific research and medical ethics."</em></p><p>The court also ruled that He had forged documents from an ethics review panel.</p><p>The other two researchers found guilty were Zhang Renli, who was sentenced to two years in prison and fined one million yuan (about $143,000), and Qin Jinzhou, whose 18-month sentence came with a two-year reprieve, and a 500,000 yuan ($71,000) fine.</p>
Keep reading
Show less
New CRISPR tools can cut, splice whole chromosomes
Experts are saying it's a "huge step forward for synthetic biology."
30 August, 2019
Pixabay
- Until recently, the gene-editing tool CRISPR has only been able to make changes within single genes.
- The new tools allow scientists to cut and splice larger chunks of genetic material.
- The findings will likely have major implications for a variety of research fields, and also allow researchers to create synthetic species that can produce molecules not made by natural organisms.
<p><br></p></div>
<p>Since 2012, the gene-editing tool CRISPR/Cas9 has enabled scientists to target and modify DNA with remarkable precision. But one constraint of this technique has been that it's only able to make changes within single genes. Now, scientists have developed new tools that allow them to cut and splice large chunks of chromosomes, and to assemble new synthetic genomes from distinct strains.</p><p>The findings, published in a paper on <a href="https://science.sciencemag.org/content/365/6456/922" target="_blank">August 30</a> in <em>Science</em>, likely have major implications for fields such as synthetic biology, computational biology, and biological computing, and could lead to better treatments for a wide array of diseases. </p><p>"This new paper is incredibly exciting and a huge step forward for synthetic biology," Anne Meyer, a synthetic biologist at the University of Rochester in New York who was not involved in the paper, told <em>Science</em>.</p><p>Unlike previous gene-editing tools, the new tools are able to make many precise cuts to long strands of DNA without leaving any scarring.</p><p>The researchers, as Robert F. Service wrote for <a href="https://www.sciencemag.org/news/2019/08/forget-single-genes-crispr-now-cuts-and-splices-whole-chromosomes?utm_campaign=ScienceNow&utm_source=JHubbard&utm_medium=Facebook" target="_blank"><em>Science</em></a>, also altered "another well-known tool, an enzyme called lambda red recombinase, so it could glue the ends of the original chromosome—minus the removed portion—back together, as well as fuse the ends of the removed portion. Both circular strands of DNA are protected from endonucleases. The technique can create different circular chromosome pairs in other cells, and researchers can then swap chromosomes at will, eventually inserting whatever chunk they choose into the original genome."</p><p>"Now, I can make a series of changes in one segment and then another and combine them together. That's a big deal," Chang Liu, a synthetic biologist at the University of California, Irvine, told <em>Science</em>.</p>
Why CRISPR Gene Editing Gives Its Creator Nightmares
<div class="rm-shortcode" data-media_id="u3sqCd8p" data-player_id="FvQKszTI" data-rm-shortcode-id="70a49da39ebef0046722a15fbd2f9cca"> <div id="botr_u3sqCd8p_FvQKszTI_div" class="jwplayer-media" data-jwplayer-video-src="https://content.jwplatform.com/players/u3sqCd8p-FvQKszTI.js"> <img src="https://cdn.jwplayer.com/thumbs/u3sqCd8p-1920.jpg" class="jwplayer-media-preview" /> </div> <script src="https://content.jwplatform.com/players/u3sqCd8p-FvQKszTI.js"></script> </div> <p>The new tools will likely open the doors for scientists to explore many novel areas: create synthetic species that can produce molecules not made by natural organisms, write information into DNA for use as a storage device, and drive down the costs of medical research by making it easier to edit bacterial genomes on a larger scale.</p><p>However, using CRISPR to edit large sections of the human genome is unlikely to occur anytime soon, given the regulatory hurdles and <a href="https://bigthink.com/surprising-science/first-genetically-edited-babies" target="_self">ethical complications</a>. After all, scientists aren't fully <a href="https://bigthink.com/design-for-good/new-study-finds-that-crispr-may-cause-hundreds-of-unintended-mutations-into-the-genome" target="_self">aware of the consequences</a> of making small edits to DNA, much less larger cuts.</p><p>"We don't always fully understand the changes we're making," Alan Regenberg, a bioethicist at Johns Hopkins Berman Institute of Bioethics, told <em><a href="The new tools will likely open the doors for scientists to explore many novel areas: create synthetic species that can produce molecules not made by natural organisms, write information into DNA for use as a storage device, and drive down the costs of medical research by making it easier to edit bacterial genomes on a larger scale. However, using CRISPR to edit large sections of the human genome is unlikely to occur anytime soon, given the regulatory hurdles and ethical complications. After all, scientists aren't fully aware of the consequences of making small edits to DNA, much less larger cuts. "We don't always fully understand the changes we're making," Alan Regenberg, a bioethicist at Johns Hopkins Berman Institute of Bioethics, told Science News. "Even if we do make the changes we want to make, there's still question about whether it will do what we want and not do things we don't want."" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer">Science News</a></em>. "Even if we do make the changes we want to make, there's still question about whether it will do what we want and not do things we don't want."</p>
Keep reading
Show less
5 ways CRISPR will reshape humanity and the world
A transformational tool for the future of the world.
22 August, 2019
- The 'cut and paste' DNA tool CRISPR will one day eliminate deadly diseases.
- The technology will give us the capability to genetically design our children and perhaps one day ourselves.
- CRISPR is already revolutionizing certain fields of medicine.
<p>Genetic engineering has been in a rapid pace of development these past few years. Experts believe that CRISPR, the gene editing technology responsible for much of this progress will completely revolutionize the world. We are now playing with the genome on a scale we've never broached before. </p><p>In comparison to other genetic engineering tools, CRISPR, is an accurate, cheap and highly efficient method that's easy to use. Discovered in the 1990s, it's a tool combined with specific RNA that allows it to either insert or delete a genetic sequence in a targeted DNA. Currently, the patent for CRISPR is pending as there is a legal dispute between two separate teams of scientists. </p><p>The new power to alter DNA – our blueprint for life – brings us with many new questions and ethical quandaries. Yet, the overwhelming fact is that this technology will bring about undreamed of possibilities. </p><p>Whether that's stomping out all diseases endemic to our genes, reviving extinct species or augmenting ourselves into transhumans, we're in for quite a ride. Here are some of the most exciting ways that CRISPR is going to reshape humanity and the world.<span></span></p>
Curing diseases from genetic errors
<p>There are a number of genes we inherit which give us bum luck when it comes to disease. Already, CRISPR-based platforms have been developed which are either identifying the genes that lead to these diseases or are actively finding out how to remove them.</p> <p>For example, scientists have been working on researching the genes responsible for the cellular process that leads to neurodegenerative diseases such as Alzheimer's and Parkinson's.</p> <p>Pharmaceutical companies are developing new CRISPR-based drugs that could one day treat heritable heart disease and other disorders. </p> <p>There has been some headway from multiple sources in treating HIV. CRISPR has managed to remove the virus's DNA from a few humans' genomes. In 2018, this was mired in controversy as Chinese scientist He Jiankui reported in November that he'd <a href="https://bigthink.com/surprising-science/crispr-edited-babies-improved-cognition" target="_self">used CRISPR to delete a gene called CCR5,</a> which enables humans to contract HIV, the virus that causes AIDS.</p> <p>The scientific community or at least the most vocal of the bunch, were in an uproar after this as they saw the genetic alteration as premature and unethical. They also worried about the unintended consequences.</p> <p>Yet more level heads in the community and the ones that matter most like Harvard geneticist George Church, found the criticism to be overblown. In an <a href="https://www.sciencemag.org/news/2018/11/i-feel-obligation-be-balanced-noted-biologist-comes-defense-gene-editing-babies" target="_blank">interview with Science Insider</a> he talked about how he felt an obligation to be balanced on the subject. </p> <p>"People have said there's a moratorium on germline editing and I contributed to reports that called for that, but a moratorium is not a permanent ban forever… At some point, we have to say we've done hundreds of animal studies and we've done quite a few human embryo studies. It may be after the dust settles there's mosaicism and off targets that affect medical outcomes. It may never be zero."</p><br>In this regard, many Western countries are falling behind when it comes to our freedom of manipulating genetic code. In places such as China, scientists are given free reign to <a href="https://bigthink.com/surprising-science/human-monkey-hybrid" target="_self">experiment on human embryos.</a>Understanding cancer completely in order to eliminate it
<p>CRISPR has already been instrumental in modifying immune cells to make them more efficient at attacking and destroying cancer cells. The genetic alteration tool can also be used to evaluate how someone will react to new anti-cancer drugs, which could lead to a personalized genetic treatment plan.</p> <p>We're also learning more about how cancer cells work together. Lou Staudt, M.D., Ph.D., of NCI's Center for Cancer Research said,</p> <p>"We know that mutated genes form abnormal regulatory networks within the cells. Those regulatory networks can give you new targets for therapy… Comparing the behavior of cancer and normal cells with the same CRISPR-generated mutation can help researchers identify gene targets that cancer cells depend on for survival but that normal cells can do without."</p> <p>Studies like this can help researchers better determine how cancer cells grow and propagate. Many scientists believe that understanding exactly how cancer cells develop and change is the best way to discover how to eliminate cancer completely. They dream of one day making all sorts of cancer akin to treating the common cold.</p>An evolution to the Transhuman
<p>Many people are concerned about the idea of "designer babies" as humans will eventually opt for genetic enhancements. The least creative among us think that it'll create a kind of genetic discrimination. Rather than outright banning the technology – which will just bring it underground anyways and expedite a haves and haves not situation, we should encourage it.</p> <p>CRISPR has the distinct capability to bring about new and diverse paths of human evolution. In the hands of great scientists and artists, we could become something else entirely. Something great and powerful. </p> <p>Again we look to George Church, who has recently <a href="https://bigthink.com/surprising-science/harvard-geneticist-plan-for-redesigning-humans" target="_self">made a list of genes</a> that could be modified to enhance human abilities. The list includes both the positive and potential negative effects which could bring us to the posthuman or transhuman age. </p> <p>In an interview with Futurism, the professor talked about this database of genes and his goal to drive down the cost of such genetic resources.</p><p>"I felt that both ends of the phenotype spectrum should be useful. And the protective end might yield more powerful medicines useful for more people and hence less expensive."</p> <p>"It also serves as a reminder," Church said regarding the database. "that not all mutations are negative or neutral."</p> <p>Some of the choices from the "Transhumanist Wishlist" included genetic alterations that would aid in enhanced physiology and intellect. Such as the LRP5 gene which would give people extra-strong bones that don't break. Or MSTN that could produce larger and leaner muscles, while also curing muscular dystrophy. On the mind side, the GRIN2B gene could lead to greater memory and increased learning abilities.</p>Destroy dangerous pests and their pathogens
<p>Mosquitos carry some of the worst forms of disease which wreck underdeveloped countries. This may one day be a thing of the past. Scientists have already created mosquitoes that are malaria resistant. These altered mosquitoes would pass on these same genes nearly 100 percent of the time to their offspring, even after mating with non-edited mosquitoes.</p> <p>The method for change here is called transmission. CRISPR could directly attack infectious diseases through a number of different pests, be it rats, mosquitoes, ticks, or what have you. <a href="https://www.healio.com/infectious-disease/emerging-diseases/news/print/infectious-disease-news/%7Bce5e7472-68b6-48ee-82fb-c6126c746068%7D/can-gene-drives-end-mosquito-borne-disease" target="_blank">Scientists at the University of California, Riverside</a> have developed genetically altered mosquitoes with a set of strange traits, resulting in wingless and yellow mosquitoes.</p> <p>Their intention is to gain radical control over the traits that the mosquito will pass to its offspring. The end goal is to test a "gene drive" which would inhibit disease carrying properties. A gene drive would make sure that a genetic trait is never inherited again to a certain degree. </p> <p>Interfering with mosquitos could have unintended consequences. While we don't know the extent of their ecological value, this could disrupt a fragile system we're not aware of.</p>Revive extinct species
<p>Since 2017, Church and his team have been working on developing an embryo <a href="https://bigthink.com/stephen-johnson/scientists-are-trying-revive-woolly-mammoth-dna-to-fight-climate-change" target="_self">for an elephant mammoth hybrid,</a> which essentially would bring the mammoth back to life. A <a href="https://bigthink.com/surprising-science/woolly-mammoth" target="_self">number of labs around the world</a> have been working on this problem. Japanese and Russian scientists were recently able to "reactive" 28,000 year old wooly mammoth cells. </p> <p>"I was looking under the microscope at night while I was alone in the laboratory," 90-year-old Akira Iritani, a co-author on the new study who's spent years working toward resurrecting the woolly mammoth, told CNN. "I was so moved when I saw the cells stir. I'd been hoping for this for 20 years."</p><p>The rebirth of mammoths could actually be a boon to tackling climate change as well. </p> <p>"The elephants that lived in the past — and elephants possibly in the future — knocked down trees and allowed the cold air to hit the ground and keep the cold in the winter, and they helped the grass grow and reflect the sunlight in the summer… Those two [factors] combined could result in a huge cooling of the soil and a rich ecosystem," said George Church at the 2018 Liberty Science Center Genius Gala.</p> <p>Scientists hope to utilize CRISPR to combine genetic code from Asian elephants with the wooly mammoth. Samples of mammoth genes comes from frozen hairballs that were found in Siberia. </p> <p>An undertaking like this could move the field forward in such a way that an unfathomable amount of ancient animals could be resurrected and modified in ways to temper our new world.</p>
Keep reading
Show less
CRISPR used in human trials for first time in U.S.
Do scientists know enough about gene editing to move forward with human trials?
09 August, 2019
Photo credit: Gregor Fischer / picture alliance via Getty Images
- Doctors used the gene-editing tool in an attempt to treat a 34-year-old patient with sickle cell disease.
- Last year, a Chinese scientist caused major controversy when he used CRISPR to genetically edit two human embryos.
- It's unclear exactly what risks are involved in gene editing.
<p><br></p></div>
<p>For the first time in the U.S., doctors used the gene-editing tool CRISPR to alter the genes of a human.</p><p>The patient was Victoria Gray, 34, who suffers from sickle cell disease, a genetic defect in which bone marrow produces a defective protein that renders blood cells unable to carry oxygen effectively. </p><p>"It's horrible," Gray told <a href="https://www.npr.org/sections/health-shots/2019/07/29/744826505/sickle-cell-patient-reveals-why-she-is-volunteering-for-landmark-gene-editing-st" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer"><em>NPR</em></a>. "When you can't walk or lift up a spoon to feed yourself, it gets real hard."</p><p>In an experimental procedure, doctors took stem cells from Gray's own bone marrow and used CRISPR to disable the faulty gene — named BCL11A. This disabling boosts the production of fetal hemoglobin, an oxygen transport protein. All humans produce fetal hemoglobin when young, and for decades it's been thought that this protein, in particular, helps treat sickle cell disease. </p><p>Now, researchers are able to put that theory to the test.</p><p>"It's exciting to see that we might be on the cusp of a highly effective therapy for patients with sickle cell," <a href="https://www.vrtx.com/leadership/david-altshuler-md-phd" target="_blank">Dr. David Altshuler</a>, executive vice president, global research and chief scientific officer at <a href="https://www.vrtx.com/" target="_blank">Vertex Pharmaceuticals</a>, which is conducting a study with CRISPR Therapeutics, told <em>NPR</em>. "People with sickle cell disease have been waiting a long time for therapies that just let them live a normal life."</p><p>Still, it's unclear what risks gene editing poses to humans, given that almost all past experiments have been limited to animals and culture dishes. One major risk factor has to do with the interconnectedness of genes and their unmapped functions. For example, in June, a paper published in <a href="https://www.nature.com/articles/s41591-019-0459-6" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer"><em>Nature Medicine</em></a> described how editing genes to yield one specific benefit might result in a number of unforeseen consequences.</p>
Why CRISPR Gene Editing Gives Its Creator Nightmares
<div class="rm-shortcode" data-media_id="u3sqCd8p" data-player_id="FvQKszTI" data-rm-shortcode-id="70a49da39ebef0046722a15fbd2f9cca"> <div id="botr_u3sqCd8p_FvQKszTI_div" class="jwplayer-media" data-jwplayer-video-src="https://content.jwplatform.com/players/u3sqCd8p-FvQKszTI.js"> <img src="https://cdn.jwplayer.com/thumbs/u3sqCd8p-1920.jpg" class="jwplayer-media-preview" /> </div> <script src="https://content.jwplatform.com/players/u3sqCd8p-FvQKszTI.js"></script> </div> <p>Specifically, the researchers of the new study were examining the potential consequences of a highly controversial gene-editing procedure conducted last year by a Chinese scientist named He Jiankui, <a href="https://bigthink.com/surprising-science/crispr-edited-babies-improved-cognition" target="_self">who used CRISPR to edit two human embryos</a>, giving them a genetic mutation that theoretically rendered them unable to contract HIV. The scientists' main takeaway? Their research suggests that people born with that specific mutation tend to die sooner than those who don't.</p><p>"There might be a public perception that one mutation does one thing, but biology doesn't work like that," Rasmus Nielsen, an evolutionary biologist who coauthored the paper with one of his postdocs, Xinzhu Wei, told <a href="https://www.wired.com/story/a-study-exposes-the-health-risks-of-gene-editing-human-embryos/" target="_blank"><em>Wired</em></a>. "I hope this raises awareness that before we think about modifying the human genome with CRISPR, we carefully consider all the possible effects of the mutations that we create."</p><p>Still, for people with life-shortening diseases like sickle cell, the risks of gene editing might be well worth it.</p><p>"This gives me hope if it gives me nothing else," Gray told <em>NPR</em>. It will likely take years of further testing before gene-editing procedures could become available to a wider pool of sickle cell patients.</p>
Keep reading
Show less
Popular
Featured Video
