British Researcher Allowed To Perform Controversial Gene Editing Experiments

A British researcher has received permission to make controversial gene editing experiments on embryos. The experiment will use a powerful new genome editing technique while other researchers all over the world are observing a voluntary moratorium on such experiments that can alter DNA passed down to subsequent generations.

According to The New York Times, the experiment performed in the United Kingdom would not contravene the moratorium. The researcher has no intention to further implant the altered embryos in a womb. However, this kind of experiments is posing the question of whether to alter the human genetics for medical purposes.

Crispr or Crispr-Cas9 , as it is called the new genetic editing technique, according to Times, allows cut-and-paste operations on DNA with unprecedented accuracy and ease. The Crispr technique could be used to change human early embryos, sperm and eggs, unlike other types of genetic techniques that alter only adult human tissues.

The alterations produced by the means of the Crispr gene editing technique would be inherited by the patient's offspring. In December, the leading scientific academies of the Britain, United States and China issued a joint statement asking the scientific community around the world to avoid experiments altering human inheritance since this is perceived to hold far-reaching consequences.

On Monday, the Human Fertilization and Embryology Authority, a British regulatory agency, approved an application by Kathy Niakan, a researcher at the Francis Crick Institute in London, to use the Crispr technique in experiments that alter human embryos. The embryos will be procured from fertility clinics with stocks more than their clients need. According to a report in Nature, Dr. Niakan will not implant the altered embryos in a womb.

The goal of the gene editing experiments that will be performed by Dr. Niakan is to understand the genetic switches that act as the fertilized egg progresses through its first few divisions. Her experiment will lead to better knowledge of the biology of development but will not design any specific medical treatment.