Presidents of National Academy of Medicine and National Academy of Sciences Present new initiative on ethics of human gene editing technology

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Victor J. Dzau, MD, President of the National Academy of Medicine, and Ralph J. Cicerone, PhD, President of the National Academy of Sciences, emphasize the great promise that new, more powerful and efficient genome editing techniques such as CRISPR/Cas9 hold for improving human health and boosting food production in their Editorial "Responsible Use of Human Gene-Editing Technologies" in a special issue of Human Gene Therapy devoted to genome editing. Use of these innovative molecular tools to modify human germline DNA, however, raises technical, social, and ethical issues that will be the focus of a multidisciplinary, international initiative led by the Academies, as described in the Editorial published in Human Gene Therapy, a peer-reviewed journal from Mary Ann Liebert, Inc., publishers. The article is available free on the Human Gene Therapy website until October 15, 2015. "The Academies have a history of providing leadership on emerging and controversial technologies," state Drs. Dzau and Cicerone. "In keeping with these efforts, we are prepared to undertake this initiative to provide a comprehensive understanding of human genome editing and its implications."

About the Journal

Human Gene Therapy, the Official Journal of the European Society of Gene and Cell Therapy, British Society for Gene and Cell Therapy, French Society of Cell and Gene Therapy, German Society of Gene Therapy, and five other gene therapy societies, is an authoritative peer-reviewed journal published monthly in print and online. Led by Editor-in-Chief Terence R. Flotte, MD, Celia and Isaac Haidak Professor of Medical Education and Dean, Provost, and Executive Deputy Chancellor, University of Massachusetts Medical School, Human Gene Therapy presents reports on the transfer and expression of genes in mammals, including humans. Related topics include improvements in vector development, delivery systems, and animal models, particularly in the areas of cancer, heart disease, viral disease, genetic disease, and neurological disease, as well as ethical, legal, and regulatory issues related to the gene transfer in humans. Its companion journals, Human Gene Therapy Methods, published bimonthly, focuses on the application of gene therapy to product testing and development, and Human Gene Therapy Clinical Development, published quarterly, features data relevant to the regulatory review and commercial development of cell and gene therapy products. Tables of contents for all three publications and a free sample issue may be viewed on the Human Gene Therapy website.

About the Publisher

Mary Ann Liebert, Inc., publishers is a privately held, fully integrated media company known for establishing authoritative peer-reviewed journals in many promising areas of science and biomedical research, including Nucleic Acid Therapeutics, Tissue Engineering, Stem Cells and Development, and Cellular Reprogramming. Its biotechnology trade magazine, Genetic Engineering & Biotechnology News (GEN), was the first in its field and is today the industry's most widely read publication worldwide. A complete list of the firm's 80 journals, books, and newsmagazines is available on the Mary Ann Liebert, Inc., publishers website.

Source: Mary Ann Liebert, Inc./Genetic Engineering News