We must stop gene-edited changes that pass on to children
Framework proposed for nations not to approve any clinical use of heritable gene editing unless certain conditions are met
Remember the global outrage four months ago at world-first claims a researcher had used the gene-editing tool CRISPR to edit the genomes of twin girls?
The molecular scissors known as CRISPR (CRISPR/cas9 in full) allow scientists to modify DNA with high precision and greater ease than previous technologies.
Now researchers from the US, Europe, China and New Zealand have published a prominent call for a moratorium, or temporary freeze, on the clinical use of germline gene-editing technology in humans.
(Germline editing means the genes that are edited are included in eggs and sperm, the ‘germ’ cells, and can be passed on to following generations.)
