Scientists Support Research On Gene Editing Of Human Embryos
The International Summit On Human Gene Editing The National Academy of Science via Flickr Following a three-day summit in Washington, D.C. to discuss the use of human gene editing, scientists and bioethicists from around the world urged basic research using these technologies to continue, but strongly cautioned that embryos and other types of reproductive cells that have undergone gene editing not be used to establish pregnancy, according to a statement released shortly after the talk ended this afternoon. Scientists as well as bioethicists, government officials, and various patient advocacy representatives gathered to discuss how research should proceed on the novel gene-editing tool, CRISPR-Cas9 (known commonly as CRISPR), which allows scientists to easily edit the human genome. Basic research is...“clearly needed and should proceed.”While other editing tools exist, CRISPR has sparked the interest of researchers...