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CRISPR: Chinese Scientists To Pioneer Gene-Editing Trial On Humans (theguardian.com)
An anonymous reader quotes a report from The Guardian: A team of Chinese scientists will be the first in the world to apply the revolutionary gene-editing technique known as CRISPR on human subjects. Led by Lu You, an oncologist at Sichuan University's West China hospital in Chengdu, China, the team plan to start testing cells modified with CRISPR on patients with lung cancer in August, according to the journal Nature. CRISPR is a game-changer in bioscience; a groundbreaking technique which can find, cut out and replace specific parts of DNA using a specially programmed enzyme named Cas9. Its ramifications are next to endless, from changing the color of mouse fur to designing malaria-free mosquitoes and pest-resistant crops to correcting a wide swath of genetic diseases like sickle-cell anaemia in humans. The Sichuan University trial, it is important to note, does not edit the germ-line; its effects will not be hereditary. What the researchers plan to do is enroll patients with metastatic non-small cell lung cancer, Nature reported, and for whom other treatment options -- including chemotherapy and radiotherapy -- have failed. They will then extract immune cells from the patients' blood and use CRISPR to add a new genetic sequence which will help the patient's immune system target and destroy the cancer. The cells will then be re-introduced into the patients' bloodstream. The Guardian does note that CRISPR was approved for human trials in the U.S., but if it begins on schedule in August the Sichuan University study will beat them to the punch of being the first of its kind.
The summary hints at the real plans, which are to experiment with human genes to vary appearance and other attributes, just like experimentation on animals. The obvious purpose is eugenics, in order to create designer humans and weed out the undesirables. This is morally and ethically wrong. And because it's a bit harder to get away with this in the United States, scientists have secret meetings like the one about making a custom human genome, and then move their work to China. This is wrong. Wrong. Wrong. Wrong. Say no to eugenics.
What could go wrong...
GMO humans will still be safe to eat.
Sheesh, evil *and* a jerk. -- Jade
I think that Juno therapeutics and other companies like Editas (a play on the founder's Harvard connection) have been using CRISPR-cas9 for some time now in their genetically engineered stem cell trials.
What's interesting is that these trials have been very successful, I recall a 94% of subjects having complete remission even though they were mostly (all?) stage 4 cancer patients. Even more telling is that the FDA let Juno continue its trials despite the deaths of 3 patients, they claimed it was due to the chemotherapy and not the gene editing. Evidently the FDA agreed.
With CRISPR-Cas9 (and Cas11?) providing reliable, repeatable and "easy" genetic editing that's cheap (reagents cost on the order of $40) I think there will be an explosion of genetic activity. Add to that the advent of cheap ($1K) DNA sequencers and I think this will be something that will become much more common.
Even here in Vietnam, you can easily learn the techniques necessary to do genetic engineering at home. Getting the necessary supplies is a bit harder but I'm working on that :)
They want bigger Wangs.
Table-ized A.I.
question ultimately is whether we, as individuals, societies or groups, respect humans as they are in themselves, with what we perceive as imperfections, incurable deceases, 'deformities', age or stage of development(from embryos to old age 'sans teeth, sans eyes, sans taste, sans everything", gender, level of education, etc etc
or do we disrespect them as they are, and instead try to decide for them and try(sometimes by giving power to authorities through legislation) to change and aim for an ideal of perfect condition(or failing that effort, get rid of them through killing, euthanasia, abortion etc etc), based on our judgments on their perceived imperfections.
The Sichuan University trial, it is important to note, does not edit the germ-line; its effects will not be hereditary.
This test run may not be, but this technique can not only be applied to germ-line cells, but also made 'super-hereditary'. When you change germ-line cells, they are transmitted only in half the cases, no matter if dominant or recessive. But they found a technique to have the modifications transmitted every time ! I don't remember the name of that technique though.
Non-Linux Penguins ?
I wonder what the limitations of a genetic sex-change would be. Also, wouldn't women get the shaft (so to speak) given they (usually) lack a Y chromosome?
*cue Clone of My Own quotation*
Corruption is convincing someone that the selfless ideal is the same as their selfish ideal.
When then "cure" aging or even reverse it, that's when things will get very interesting. And I'm referring to humanity, not China specifically.
Sounds great, but the world will become really overpopulated.
of our genome before the arrogant ones start modifying it.
My ism, it's full of beliefs.
Sorry - I know it has/will happen(ed) .
Students who are intelligent will always go past the lines drawn in the dust of the past.
As senior scientists, these journeys will be continued, at least in the imagination.
Genetics, physics, weapons, robotics, computer science ( AI...).... the subject does not matter.
Same thng applies to the topics of law, sociology, psychology, sexuality, religion, education, whatever.
The lines are arbitrary, and subject to no hard limits ( like the speed of light, second law of thermodynamics...).
They will be crossed.
So buckle up, make sure the belts are tight, and enjoy the ride, until the sudden stop.
Furries are going to win after all. Thought we're not advanced enough as an society to handle that yet. Some people still haven't even gotten over skin color or eye shape.
CRISPR is just a passive nucleotide constract. It's the CAS system that does the work.
CRISPR/CAS.
I do not believe in karma. "Funny"=-6. Do good and forbid evil. Yours, Oft-Offtopic Flamebaiting Troll.
Consequences or true motivations aside, if they can get a viable genetic treatment to work, it would be stupid not to cheer them on.
Cancer is one of our biggest killers and, to date, our methods of dealing with it are nearly as harmful as the cancer itself.
A year or two of treatments can easily bankrupt a person with zero guarantees the treatments will even be successful.
Technology and advances in science can be downright scary depending on intended use but we would not be what we are today without the willingness to take that risk.
Will there be banned from the Olympics? Will we face them on the battlefield?
So when can I get my telemere chains fixed with this and buy myself a few more decades?
Let me guess. All those people with cancer deserve to die because that is natures way? All those kids born with genetic diseases should be left to suffer because you think it is immoral to edit out those errors?
Why don't you get off your fucking high horse. People like you really grind my gears. The holier than tho crowd. You think you have the right to decide what is moral and what is not. I say, fuck you. You and your bible beating brethren are the reason medical progress has more or less come to a halt in the US.
Thanks
We now know that if we turn on/off genes epigenetically, those switches (on/off) can be passed to offspring.