We are in the first quarter of the 21st century, where new stages of human biology and science are discovered almost daily. One that has rose is the quiet but now fast world of embryo gene editing. It is only a decade old, but has quickly gained momentum over the past few years. Across the world, in laboratories, researchers are now capable of reaching in during the very early stages of human life, where a human is just days old, and altering the DNA of the embryo. 

First, the reach of this technology is entirely extensive. Unlike past medical advances, it is not confined to a single country, nor a single company. Embryo gene editing is being studied at biotech startups, as well as private laboratories. All of this research has now begged the question:  Should we remove deadly genes, obesity and causes for hereditary diseases? 

The modern science of genetics began during the mid 20th century, when two researchers in England, James Watson and Francis Crick, decoded the structure of DNA. It was hailed as not only a major discovery in the field of science, but it was notable for overcoming adversity. Genome editing was pioneered in ’90s, by biochemists Jennifer Doudna and Emmanuelle Charpentier, who won the Nobel Prize in Chemistry as a result, but the usage at the time was limited by the efficiency of editing, which was very low. Editing genetic diseases out of embryos has been made possible by using CRISPR-Cas9, which allows for very clear DNA changes through a process known as “cutting.” Using this strategy is also high-risk, as it is controversial.555rrttttz But the question of whether this process is unethical is laid on the table. 

One drawback of this process is that it is possible for it to backfire or have unforeseen consequences. Gene editing technology works by targeting a specific disease-causing mutation in the embryo’s DNA. During the process a healthy version of the gene is used as a template to replace the faulty or defective gene, while the healthy gene becomes permanent. One example of this is a 2017 study where scientists used the CRISPR-Cas9 to correct a mutation for hypertrophic cardiomyopathy (a heart condition where there is a thickening of the heart muscle) in human embryos. By the end of the study, 72% of the embryos were free of this mutation. 

But several safety risks and concerns have risen as a result of recent research showing that gene editing can of course lead to incidents that cause harm to the genome. Such incidents include the gene editing machine having an error. During this, the machine can cut off at the wrong location within a genome. Large-scale risks include disease development such as cancer or mosaicism, where there is a mix of edited and unedited cells.

There is also the social concern of creating “designer babies.” This is where genome editors use non-therapeutic enhancements that are not medically necessary in order to “upgrade” the child. This creates a new fear of inequality and “lower-class.”

Lastly, there is concern regarding future generations. With the way genetics work, if the first altered embryo is genetically edited, then their offspring will have genetically altered DNA. Once the genetic code is changed, there is no going back, so if there was an unexpected malfunction in the editing, then it will continue to affect generations to come. 

In this era of genetics, has the pursuit of progress hindered researchers’ determination to follow ethics? The power of altering human life at the very beginning should not exist without accountability, demanding not just technical precision but moral restraint.