Germ-line gene therapy – genetic engineering (such as to correct genetic diseases) that can be inherited by descendents – is forbidden in places like the US and UK. The idea is that this could lead to either horrible unintended birth defects… or a race to develop superbabies and the like.
The Chinese don’t seem to feel that worried about it.
Why is the scientific world abuzz about an unpublished paper? Because it could permanently change human DNA
*Apparently,* some Chinese researchers have successfully tinkered with viable human embryos and produced inheritable genetic traits.
Such things as designer babies are *inevitable.* Governments can try to keep a lid on nuclear weapons because nukes rely on the availability of very rare and exceedingly difficult to produce materials such as plutonium. But all that’s needed for genetic work are well equipped labs, some educated people and information. Soon enough, the technology will exist to allow people to tinker with themselves at home (and won’t *that* result in some entertaining disasters). Governments clamping a Thous Shall Not lid on this sort of research only results in other governments getting a lead.
Currently, a lot of westerners are supposedly making their way to China to get organ transplants they can’t get at home. This disturbs a lot of folks because who knows where those organs came from; like as not that new kidney was yanked out of a political dissident, not a motorbike crash victim.
Currently, if you have a case of the Heritable Horribles and a bucket of cash, there are western medical institutions at the leading edge who might be able to help you out. But soon enough, the Chinese will be able to do it much cheaper. And soon after… the Chinese will be your only option for gene therapy if you want to make sure that your Heritable Horribles are not longer heritable. Western governments might be able to make that sort of thing illegal at home… but how will they stop someone from visiting China to get it done there? Will they be arrested upon their return?
And of course, this being China, the end results will probably be pretty hit-and-miss. Sure, that guy over there got his cancer gene fixed. But that lady over there got her MD gene replaced with cadmium. And who knows how many will return home carrying the Zombie Apocalypse gene… dormant in them, but it’ll be expressed openly in their offspring. This problem could be solved by making this sort of treatment available in the West for a competitive fee, with western medical practices and oversight.