#gm human

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Top 7 tech hurdles to human germline CRISPR

Top 7 tech hurdles to human germline CRISPR

Human germline CRISPR raises major bioethical considerations, but what about technical issues?

Setting aside the many ethical issue about the general idea of human modification itself, could this really work? Yes in theory it could, but there are some very tough technological challenges that could and likely would cause failures or unacceptable outcomes at many steps along the way. These failures…

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TGIF: NatGeo sell out, GM Humans, Wild West, Science backstabbing, & more

TGIF: NatGeo sell out, GM Humans, Wild West, Science backstabbing, & more

Image from Wikipedia

It’s a shame that National Geographic has become part of a corporate empire that is not always consistent, to put it nicely, with data-based reality. Can NatGeo maintain its credibility and impact, when it is owned by a climate change denier (quoted for example as dissing folks as “extreme greenies”) who also has other very non-scientific priorities?

There’s been an…

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Concerns surface on Chinese paper on genetic modification of human embryos

Concerns surface on Chinese paper on genetic modification of human embryos

The paper that came out Wednesday from a research group in China reporting the first genetic modification of human embryos has sparked a lot of discussion. Some concerns about this paper have surfaced.

1-day review? The paper (HT to John Borghi) was in review only from March 30-April 1 — so at most 24 hours. Really? That certainly raises a red flag of inadequate or absent peer review. That kind…

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Scientists in China create genetically modified human embryos: 'A cautionary tale'

Scientists in China create genetically modified human embryos: ‘A cautionary tale’

Rumors have been flying for months that researchers in China and possibly elsewhere were shopping papers around at high-profile journals that reported gene editing and genetic modification of human embryos.

The rumors were right.

Today, one of the Chinese teams of researchers published their paper on genetically modified (GM) human embryos in the journal Protein & Cell.

The paper is open access…

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Is 'GM human' a loaded name?

Is ‘GM human’ a loaded name?

During the still ongoing discussions of genetic modification in the human germ line and potentially in actual human beings in the future, an interesting, but difficult question has emerged:

What words or names would be most appropriate for the community to use to refer to potential future human beings that have gene edits?

I have up until now referred to such hypothetical people as “genetically…

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