Bioethicist Caplan makes case against germline editing moratorium

Outrage over He Jiankui’s unethical use of CRISPR to modify embryos that resulted in the birth of two gene edited babies has fueled loud demands from scientists, ethicists, physicians and politicians for moratoria on human germline editing. But there’s also been pushback from scientists and ethicists who object to blanket prohibitions and want to keep the door open to germline editing if and when it can be done safely.

BioCentury Executive Editor C. Simone Fishburn has advocated for international collaboration to fund ethical research, as well as the elucidation of standards for assessing the safety of germline editing (see “Talk Less, Do More: Germline Gene Editing Needs Real Plans, Not Just Moratoria”). ...