“Polygenic Adaptation”
One of the world’s leading geneticists says it will only be a matter of time before the genes of human embryos are ‘edited’ to enhance their health and intelligence – and it is something we should embrace rather than fear.
“A commentary published in Nature calls for a moratorium on clinical uses of heritable human genome editing and the establishment of an international governance framework. (We responded to the commentary with a joint letter, which is an abbreviated version of this statement.) The call comes following claims by a scientist in China to have edited the genes of early embryos, in treatments that resulted in the birth of twins. The scientist’s work – revealed at the Second International Summit on Human Genome Editing in Hong Kong, jointly organized by our Academies, was condemned by the summit organizers and by much of the wider scientific community.”
China’s health ministry has issued draft regulations that will restrict the use of gene editing in humans, just three months after Chinese researcher He Jiankui announced that twin girls had been born with edited genomes. The proposal includes severe penalties for those who break the rules. If approved, scientists say the policy could have gains and drawbacks for research.
New research suggests that a controversial gene-editing experiment to make children resistant to HIV may also have enhanced their ability to learn and form memories.
The brains of two genetically edited girls born in China last year may have been changed in ways that enhance cognition and memory, scientists say.
The twins, called Lulu and Nana, reportedly had their genes modified before birthby a Chinese scientific team using the new editing tool CRISPR. The goal was to make the girls immune to infection by HIV, the virus that causes AIDS.
Now, new research shows that the same alteration introduced into the girls’ DNA, deletion of a gene called CCR5, not only makes mice smarter but also improves human brain recovery after stroke, and could be linked to greater success in school.
