The Ethical Dilemma of Genetic Engineering

Ever since genetic engineering has emerged, the ethical debate around this field has surfaced. Research in germline genetic editing, a heritable process that takes place in embryos or reproductive cells, has rapidly advanced and new techniques are coming to light. Along with all this advancement comes the fear of impending doom due to genetic manipulation becoming a norm or going out of control, resulting in the world turning into a dystopian society similar to Aldous Huxley’s Brave New World. In our current conditions, it is important to understand and respect the ethics involved in genetic engineering. Is gene manipulation ethical? Can it serve for the benefit of society without much harm?

In an article on medical ethics, Robert Cronshaw, a medical student at Jesus College, Cambridge, describes the modern four principles approach used in an ethical dilemma. He explains that the four principles approach encompasses analyzing the situation from four different perspectives: beneficence, nonmaleficence, justice, and autonomy.

Here, I examine the field of genetic engineering using the four principles approach. Starting off, from a beneficence perspective, the genetic editing of embryos will be a step forward in promoting the wellbeing of patients as it will attempt to eliminate as many of the cruel mutations out of the gene pool as possible. Looking at genetic editing from a nonmaleficence perspective, there are still risks in the current genetic editing methods that have to be greatly reduced. Until they are minimized as much as possible, genetic editing shouldn’t become widespread. Viewing it through the lens of justice, the current methods of gene manipulation are not equally available to everyone, since they are so expensive, currently costing around $500,000 to $1.5 million, that only the wealthy can afford them (Moschos). In order for gene editing to be more equitable, it should be readily available to everyone, regardless of their economic status. Looking at this topic from the last viewpoint in the four principles approach, autonomy, genetic editing doesn’t give the patient, or embryo, the right to choose for themselves what treatment they receive. Despite this, the child is going to have a future in which they don’t have to constantly battle a horrendous disease. The problem with giving parents the authority to make this decision is that parents can manipulate this power for selfish reasons. People have abused this power to figure out the gender of the child and try to change it, which could especially be an issue in regions such as India where there is a preference for boys over girls. Parents can also abuse this game-changing power by altering appearance or intelligence for their own egotistical priorities. Overall, there are beneficial aspects to genetic engineering, but without stricter boundaries, there are a lot of ways to exploit genetic engineering.

In line with Cronshow’s analysis of gene editing through different lenses, Mary Todd Bergman, Harvard Correspondent, discusses the different perspectives to consider when discussing the ethics of genetic editing. Bergman quotes Feng Zhang, a biochemist at the Broad Institute, when he says that it is vital “to have guidelines first so that people who do this work can proceed in a responsible way, with the right oversight and quality controls.” I agree with this statement as in order to make genetic editing more widespread, it has to be tightly regulated with strongly defined guidelines so that it is not negatively manipulated in a harmful, selfish, or unfair way.

Bergman also refers to her discussion with Sheila Jasanoff, the director of the Science, Tech, and Society program at Harvard Kennedy School (HKS), who elaborates on the societal effects of genetic manipulation. She brings up a great point of giving more thought to what extremities genetic editing could take ‘designer babies’ to and what impact it would have. I think this is a great concept to bring up as genetic manipulation, along with all the emerging sciences, such as artificial intelligence, have the power to change the way we establish and determine characteristics of what it means to be a human being. This demonstrates how we need to be extra cautious in implementing changes to our current normal procedures. Introducing a high-tech-based concept, such as genetic engineering, abruptly, will lead to chaos and a transition in societal norms and function.

Building off these thoughts, I believe that genetic editing requires a lot of thought and some control in order for it to be meaningful internationally. There has to be global acceptance of set procedures and bylaws for this sector of science to be fully successful to the potential it holds. Germline genetic editing holds great prospects for the elimination of life-threatening diseases, as long as it is used responsibly.

Works Cited

Baumgaertner, Emily. “As D.I.Y. Gene Editing Gains Popularity, ‘Someone Is Going to Get Hurt’.” The New York Times, The New York Times, 14 May 2018, www.nytimes.com/2018/05/14/science/biohackers-gene-editing-virus.html?hp&action=click&pgtype=Homepage&clickSource=story-heading&module=second-column-region&region=top-news&WT.nav=top-news.

Bergman, Todd. “Harvard Researchers Share Views on Future, Ethics of Gene Editing.” Harvard Gazette, Harvard Gazette, 22 Apr. 2019, news.harvard.edu/gazette/story/2019/01/perspectives-on-gene-editing/.

“Ethical Issues in Genetic Engineering and Transgenics.” ActionBioscience, www.actionbioscience.org/biotechnology/glenn.html.

“Ethics of Manipulating Genes.” PBS, Public Broadcasting Service, www.pbs.org/wgbh/nova/article/ethics-of-manipulating-genes/.

“Medical Ethics: the Principles Used by Doctors to Make the Toughest Decisions.” Oxford Summer School from Oxford Royale Academy, 29 Aug. 2018, www.oxford-royale.com/articles/medical-ethics.html.

Moschos, Sterghios. “Gene Therapies Are Now Available, but at a Substantial Cost.” The Independent, Independent Digital News and Media, 2 Apr. 2018, www.independent.co.uk/life-style/health-and-families/gene-therapy-cost-rare-genetic-diseases-treatment-expensive-research-a8275391.html.

“What Are the Ethical Concerns of Genome Editing?” Genome.gov, www.genome.gov/about-genomics/policy-issues/Genome-Editing/ethical-concerns.