Gene editing, once the realm of science fiction, is rapidly becoming a scientific reality, sparking growing ethical concern about how far society should go in reshaping future generations. As reported byThe Citizen, the technology known as CRISPR-Cas9 is already widely used in laboratories. It acts like molecular scissors, cutting and editing specific sections of DNA to remove faulty genes or insert corrected ones.
When applied to embryos or reproductive cells, these changes affect every cell of a developing child and are passed on to future generations. While genetic intervention is not new, genetically modified crops and animal cloning date back decades, experts warn that editing human embryos presents far greater moral and social risks. Psychologist and medical doctor Dr Jonathan Redelinghuys, speaking toThe Citizen, said that South Africa and the world are not prepared for the ethical implications of fetal gene editing.
“The ethics and morality surrounding fetal gene editing remain widely debated, and current legislation does not allow such intervention. Even pre-implantation sex selection is illegal in South Africa,” he said. Redelinghuys cautioned that while eliminating hereditary diseases such as Huntington’s or cystic fibrosis may seem beneficial, gene editing could deepen social inequality.
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“Wealthier families can select desirable traits long before anyone has answers about unintended effects. A protective edit, such as CCR5, can leave a person vulnerable to other illnesses. We do not understand the knock-on impact,” he said.
He added that there can be no prediction of how removing or modifying certain traits could impact mental health, personality or genetic diversity over generations. When you adjust one part of a complex system, something else may weaken. We simply do not know.
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