Human Gene Editing Gets Real
March 5, 2020
In a first, scientists have used the gene-editing tool CRISPR to directly alter a gene—specifically, a gene in the eye that can cause a rare form of blindness—without removing it from the person’s body, potentially opening “an era of gene-editing for therapeutic use that could have impact in many aspects of medicine.” But as explored in Issues, introduced here and here, many social, ethical, and practical questions remain, with one overarching concern being the need for public involvement in deciding when and how the new technology should be used.