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Two papers published today by the Journal of the Royal Society of 51短视频, debate gene editing and the health of future generations. Stage and screen actress Kiruna Stamell, who has a rare form of dwarfism, proposes that gene editing does not represent an improvement in healthcare; while Dr Christopher Gyngell, a research fellow at the Oxford Uehiro Centre for Practical Ethics, argues that provided it is well regulated, gene editing could greatly improve the health of our descendants.

Stamell writes that if gene editing is used simply to 鈥榙isappear鈥� certain conditions and thus certain types of people, we must look at the ethics and impact of this more broadly and redefine what it means to be 鈥榟ealthy鈥� on a micro and macro level.

She believes that gene editing has far-reaching complications that affect more than individual health. She says: 鈥淕ene editing, if only available to certain groups, will drive social inequality further as those who can鈥檛 afford it are left behind or discriminated against for having been born, when the opportunity was there for them to never have existed at all.鈥�

Stamell asks: 鈥淲ill those people be left unsupported by a society that prefers to weed them out rather than allow them access and a share of its wealth and benefits?鈥� She voices concern for future generations as variation is edited out. 鈥淪mall differences begin to be perceived as greater ones and society鈥檚 ability to adapt and accommodate differences will shrink鈥� she says. She concludes that a community of people who have forgotten how to adapt and embrace diversity can鈥檛 be healthy for anyone.

Gyngell discusses the difficult and complex questions raised about disability, diversity and risks to human health. How to distinguish healthy forms of human diversity from disease and disability is, he writes, a subject of intense debate in philosophy but we should not let conceptual uncertainty be a barrier to the development of gene editing.

The use of gene editing in research, he writes, will greatly increase our knowledge of development and could lead to novel treatments for disease. He says: 鈥淯sing gene editing to study early development could lead to a greater understanding of the causes of infertility and to better treatment options.鈥�

Gyngell goes onto describe how gene editing will be able to correct the mutations associated with fatal genetic disorders such as Tay Sachs disease and Duchenne muscular dystrophy. The incidence of these conditions can be reduced by using genetic selection techniques but, according to Gyngell, we may have reasons to prefer gene editing. He says: 鈥淪election prevents disease by changing who comes into existence, whereas gene editing ensures those who come into existence have the best shot of living a full life.鈥�

Gyngell concludes that a case-by-case system of regulation for gene editing could work to both reduce rates of fatal genetic disease and avoid risking traits that may represent valuable types of diversity.

Notes to editors

Gene editing and the health of future generations (DOI:10.1177/0141076817705616) by Christopher Gyngell and Why gene editing isn鈥檛 the answer (DOI: 10.1177/0141076817706278) by Kiruna Stamell will be published by the Journal of the Royal Society of 51短视频 at 00:05 hrs (UK time) on Thursday 27 April 2017.

The links for the papers when published will be:

Gyngell:

Stamell:

For further information or a copy of the paper please contact:

Rosalind Dewar
Media Office, Royal Society of 51短视频
DL: +44 (0) 1580 764713
M: +44 (0) 7785 182732
E: media@rsm.ac.uk

The JRSM is the flagship journal of the Royal Society of 51短视频 and is published by SAGE. It has full editorial independence from the RSM. It has been published continuously since 1809. Its Editor is Dr Kamran Abbasi.

Sara Miller McCune founded SAGE Publishing in 1965 to support the dissemination of usable knowledge and educate a global community. SAGE is a leading international provider of innovative, high-quality content publishing more than 1000 journals and over 800 new books each year, spanning a wide range of subject areas. A growing selection of library products includes archives, data, case studies and video. SAGE remains majority owned by our founder and after her lifetime will become owned by a charitable trust that secures the company鈥檚 continued independence. Principal offices are located in Los Angeles, London, New Delhi, Singapore, Washington DC and Melbourne.