What is your opinion on He Jiankuis work? Do you think it is problematic? What are some positive and negative consequences of experimenting on human embryos? What opportunities come from editing a germ line?

Designer babies

Start your research first by watching these podcasts about the pros and cons of creating designer babies. Keep in mind that experiments have been done with human embryos.

next, watch the videos below about researcher He Jiankui’s research and work with the CRISPR method:

Critique

-What is your opinion on He Jiankuis work? Do you think it is problematic? Support your answers with the reasons why you think that way and use your answers to the following questions to help you write your response

– What are some positive and negative consequences of experimenting on human embryos?

– What opportunities come from editing a germ line?

– What social implications might come with editing a germ line (DNA that will be passed down for generations)?

– Could this encourage social exclusion in the future?

– Could this contribute to a socio-economic divide in the future?

He Jiankui stated “enhancing IQ, selecting hair/eye colour is not what a loving parent does. That should be banned.”

Decide – Do you think there should be a line draw between being able to alter medical traits and physical traits? How should the scientific community select which traits are available for editing and which should be banned?