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Challenging the Boundaries Between Treatment, Prevention, and Enhancement in Human Genome Editing
Margaret Waltz1, Rebecca L Walker1,2, Michael A Flatt3
1Department of Social Medicine and Center for Bioethics, University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill, Chapel Hill, North Carolina, USA.
The CRISPR Journal
|July 8, 2024
Summary
Human genome editing (HGE) governance faces challenges distinguishing between treatment, prevention, and enhancement goals. Scientists
Area of Science:
- Genetics and Bioethics
- Human Genome Editing Governance
Background:
- Traditional distinctions between treatment and enhancement goals for human genome editing (HGE) influence oversight.
- The addition of prevention as a HGE target complicates these established categories.
Purpose of the Study:
- To assess the role of treatment, prevention, and enhancement categories in ongoing HGE governance.
- To understand how scientists and governance experts perceive these distinctions.
Main Methods:
- Qualitative interviews with genome editing scientists.
- Interviews with members of HGE governance groups.
Main Results:
- Some participants maintained strict distinctions between treatment and enhancement, rejecting enhancement.
- Others found the concept of enhancement irrelevant or less morally concerning.
- Preventive HGE goals create 'gray zones' blurring lines between prevention and enhancement, potentially hindering HGE applications.
Conclusions:
- Diverse understandings of treatment, prevention, and enhancement impact HGE governance.
- Navigating these distinctions is crucial as HGE research expands beyond disease treatment to long-term prevention.
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