Episodes
Monday Sep 21, 2020
Ep.22 CRISPR Kreme
Monday Sep 21, 2020
Monday Sep 21, 2020
Chicken Mind Nuggets.
Hosted by Wifey
Chickenmindnuggets.com
@mindchicken
References for this episode
Brokowski, C., & Adli, M. (2019). CRISPR Ethics: Moral Considerations for Applications of a Powerful Tool. Journal of Molecular Biology, 431(1), 88–101. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.jmb.2018.05.044
Gantz, V. M., & Akbari, O. S. (2018, May 22). Gene editing technologies and applications for insects. Retrieved October 22, 2019, from https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC6296244/
Larson, C., & Schaffer, A. (2014). Genome Editing. (cover story). MIT Technology Review, 117(3), 26. Retrieved from https://search.ebscohost.com/login.aspx?direct=true&db=ulh&AN=95843501&site=eds-live&scope=site
Memi, F., Ntokou, A., & Papangeli, I. (2018, October 2). CRISPR/Cas9 gene-editing: Research technologies, clinical applications and ethical considerations. Retrieved October 22, 2019, from https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/30482590/
Terry, S., & Howard, S. (2018). Remote control. New Scientist, 240(3199), 24. https://doi.org/10.1016/S0262-4079(18)31842-6
Introduction music graciously provided by
Music from https://filmmusic.io
"Thinking Music" by Kevin MacLeod (https://incompetech.com)
License: CC BY (http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/)
Show script: (may differ slightly from spoken word)
This is an edited assignment I wrote for college which was researched from several peer reviewed articles. This episode doesn’t reflect my opinions regarding this research, but it is important to know what the future may have in store for us and it is also important that you do your own research on this to form your own opinions. This episode is very science based and controversial, so feel free to stop and pause if you need look anything up or take a breather.
CRISPR stand for Clustered Regularly Interspaced Palindromic Repeats. It is a technology which bacteria naturally use to fight viruses, but was developed outside of bacteria to be used for gene editing and allows us to remove mutated DNA which can code for diseases or unwanted genotypes/phenotypes by using a protein called Cas9. The use of this technology is still in the trial phase due to long term unknown risks, safety concerns, and the ethics of creating genetically modified humans. CRISPR can be used to alter the DNA of an organism for enhancement or elimination of a disease, however the altering of DNA is not allowed in human embryos where the promise of this technology may prove to have global impacts such as the elimination of Sickle Cell or other inheritable diseases. Currently, this technology is allowed in mice and certain primate subjects and the use of human embryos remains controversial for a large variety of ethical and moral reasons. The efficiency of CRISPR to target these specific genes without creating a different mutation or producing an incomplete editing of a gene has a legitimate foundation because these results have been seen in prior CRISPR experiments, however as the CRISPR technology continues to evolve and become more efficient, these concerns become less relevant to the continued use of this technology. There is also a concern for the unknown effects of the test subject and their offspring once the genes have been edited. The possibility of unintended consequences resulting from a permanent change to DNA is high and those unintended consequences are still unknown, but are closely monitored and investigated during trials. There is also a concern regarding the link between genome editing and unknown phenotypic changes resulting from such editing and since several genes can account for the biological outcome of an organism, modification to one gene may result in unknown changes to the other connected genes. One of the ethical dilemmas involving human embryos concerns the differing opinions and no official scientific documented date when an embryo becomes a person, so the lines drawn by various scientific, religious, and government agencies are vast and conflicting.
Research regarding CRISPR technology on the environment show potential concerns and applications for improvement. The use of this technology to edit the genome of insects may be beneficial to the environment because the genes could be altered to render insect borne diseases ineffective. This application would be useful in areas of the world where Malaria is present because the insects who would be carrying Malaria could be altered to where they are unable to transfer the disease, unable to carry the disease, or die if they carry the disease. Insects could also be modified with genes which makes them very susceptible to herbicides and pesticides which would save the food crops and in turn provide more food for a growing world population. However, the use of gene editing technology for insect control is not only expensive, it greatly depends on location and population control. The migration of humans and animals cannot be contained, so animals carrying an insect borne disease may spread to areas where the disease was not prevalent and unintentionally transmit the disease through various forms of contact. There is the possibility of requiring chemical pesticides and environmental modification while the technology and application of genetically modified insects is being studied and tested. However, the altered genes of genetically modified insects reduce fitness which means they are less likely to survive. Unless the altered genes for these insects are able to be transferred to non-genetically modified wild populations of insects, then the likelihood of succeeding future generations of genetically modified insects are low and the survival of wild non-genetically modified disease carrying insects are high.
Although CRISPR has shown effective in several previous animal trials and is a naturally occurring system utilized by bacteria, scientists continue to use primates for tests because of their similarity to humans. However, the specific genes targeted in primate studies have shown varying levels of efficiency, and although continued testing is required to prove the usefulness, potential, and wide spread application of this technology, the limits of single subject gene editing ethical issues, limits to number of animals that can be used for testing, requirements of labs and facilities, and errors in gene editing have created understandable restrictive conditions on the use of human genome and primate test subjects. The restriction and prohibition of human genome editing greatly depends on the governing laws of different countries conducting CRISPR trials with more than 50 countries currently upholding restrictions on the use of clinical trials. A recent study published their findings on using CRISPR technology and found that the application creates adaptive and innate immune responses which fight against the CRISPR technology. This finding brings a further concern to a baby developing in utero if CRISPR is used to perform gene editing. Since the potential wide spread scientific, potential, and future benefits compete with the individual, scientific, and a population’s ethical, moral, and religious laws of various countries including different conclusions on when a human embryo is considered a person, this technology should be restricted for testing preferably without animal and embryotic test subjects.
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