Genome editing: Bioethics shows the way

[Hunter]

Genome editing: Bioethics shows the way

Or, consider the use of genome editing to eliminate pest populations and disease vectors in the wild, like invasive species, mosquitoes, or mice. Such applications promise to eliminate some of the globe’s biggest public health threats but could also disrupt ecosystems. Public pushback against genetically modified food does not bode well for the prospects of widespread use of either genetically modified insects or animals. But, even despite a fraught history, the future of genetic engineering to fight blights, fungi, and insect pests is not doomed.

@Nathan I figure you might be interested in the topic of bioethics.

Personally, I’m all for GMOs and experimentation. However, I can understand many people’s trepidation with the practices.

What are your thoughts?

[nathan]

I am open to it - if it is managed in an Open Source framework, managed for the public good and has much more stringent testing and examining wider ecosystem impact. Corporatization and patenting what should be for the common good of all really concerns me - it doesn’t take long before the entire agricultural heritage of the human race is owned and locked up by a small group of profit driven corporations. 3 generations and no-one will remember what it used to be like.