Scientists in China have edited the DNA of a human embryo.

Scientists in China have edited the DNA of a human embryo. They have done a cut/paste on a specific gene for a blood disorder. (To remove it, not to add it. :))

They have claimed to only use "non-viable" embryos.

They cut out the known "bad" section and inserted the "good" version.

As for the pros, many people believe that this will lead to the eradication of all genetic disorders.

As for the cons, other people believe that this will lead to armageddeon, but then again those same people believe in extra dimensional sky faries and spirits so I'm not so sure about them.

As for realistic cons, people rightfully say that this should not be used to give humans the ability to grow wings or spin silk webs. Unless you are super rich.


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Quote:

"I believe this is the first report of [gene-editing technique known as] CRISPR/Cas9 applied to human pre-implantation embryos and as such the study is a landmark, as well as a cautionary tale," says George Daley, a stem-cell biologist at Harvard Medical School in Boston, Massachusetts. "Their study should be a stern warning to any practitioner who thinks the technology is ready for testing to eradicate disease genes."

Quote:

Researchers have also expressed concerns that any gene-editing research on human embryos could be a slippery slope towards unsafe or unethical uses of the technique.

Quote:

The researchers say that their results reveal serious obstacles to using the method in medical applications.

Further reading:

Scientists sound alarm over DNA editing of human embryos... Experts call for halt in research to work out safety and ethics issues.

via International Skeptics Forum http://ift.tt/1zT1N9O