| From | Biopolitical News & Views <[email protected]> |
| Subject | “Nerd Tunnel Vision” and Heritable Genome Editing |
| Date | August 15, 2019 12:51 AM |
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SUBSCRIBE ( [link removed] ) | WEBSITE ( [link removed] ) | FACEBOOK ( [link removed] ) | TWITTER ( [link removed] ) | YOUTUBE ( [link removed] ) | DONATE ( [link removed] ) | CONTACT ( mailto:[email protected] )
COMMENTARY ( #comm )
CGS IN THE NEWS ( #media )
WHAT WE'RE READING ( #read )
( [link removed] )
Scientists Can’t Be Trusted on Gene Editing ( [link removed] )
What we can learn from the Jeffrey Epstein case? CGS’ Pete Shanks breaks it down.
[ COMMENTARY SECTION HEADER ]
Book Review: ‘Superior: The Return of Race Science’ ( [link removed] )
Pete Shanks, Biopolitical Times | 07.11.2019
In her latest book, science writer Angela Saini covers the appalling history of racism, worldwide and throughout known history. Her focus on contemporary uses of modern genetics as a prop for centuries-old racist biases makes this an invaluable resource.
-------------------------
CGS Statement on the Introduction of the Senate Resolution on Gene-editing Research ( [link removed] )
CGS Press Statement | 07.16.2019
A bipartisan Senate resolution introduced in July highlights the importance of international cooperation and broadly inclusive public deliberation in making the consequential decision about whether to allow heritable genome editing. Says CGS’ Katie Hasson, “We hope this resolution passes and that its passage serves as a catalyst for these deliberations.”
-------------------------
Disability Rights and Heritable Genome Editing: Resources for Teaching and Learning ( [link removed] )
Center for Genetics and Society, Biopolitical Times | 07.19.2019
Ableism distorts narratives about human biotechnologies. In light of Denis Rebrikov’s proposal to use human germline editing to prevent deafness, we compiled a selection of resources about disability and heritable gene editing.
[ COMMENTARY SECTION HEADER ]
The New Techno-Eugenics ( [link removed] )
Dan Cloer, Vision | 07.16.2019
CGS co-founder Richard Hayes discusses how our newfound power to manipulate the genes of future children compels us to answer foundational questions about whether we are using science and technology in ways that benefit the common good.
-------------------------
Bipartisan Resolution Urges Creation of International Gene-Editing Standards ( [link removed] )
Samara Rosenfeld, Inside Digital Health | 07.19.2019
The Senate resolution recognizes that the question of whether to proceed with heritable genome editing touches all of humanity. Says CGS’ Marcy Darnovsky, “We are at a tipping point with this issue, which is why this resolution is so important now.”
[ COMMENTARY SECTION HEADER ]
Animals ( #1 ) | Assisted Reproductive Technologies ( #2 ) | Eugenics ( #3 ) | Genomics ( #4 )
Heritable Gene Editing ( #5 ) | Society ( #6 ) | Stem Cells ( #7 ) | Surrogacy ( #8 )
HERITABLE GENE EDITING
-------------------------
Following ‘CRISPR Babies’ Scandal, Senators Call for International Gene Editing Guidelines ( [link removed] )
Andrew Joseph, STAT+ | 07.15.2019
A bipartisan trio of senators has introduced a resolution underscoring their opposition to the experiments last year in China that led to the birth of the world’s first genome-edited babies.
Nature Beyond Control: How Expectations Should Inform Decisions About Human Germline Engineering ( [link removed] )
Brendan Parent & Angela Turi, Journal of Assisted Reproduction and Genetics | 07.16.2019
Scant attention has been paid to whether human germline editing can be reconciled with psychological well-being. CGS fellow Brendan Parent and colleagues argue that our limited understanding of how genes interact would conflict with our expectations of the results this technology could actually produce.
Should the Rich Be Allowed to Buy the Best Genes? ( [link removed] )
Walter Isaacson, Air Mail | 07.27.2019
In this preview of his new book, author and scholar Walter Isaacson reports on the conversations he’s having about CRISPR and inequality as he travels across North America.
The World Health Organization Says No More Gene-edited Babies ( [link removed] )
Megan Molteni, Wired | 07.30.2019
The WHO’s director-general put out a statement urging “that regulatory authorities in all countries should not allow any further work in this area until its implications have been properly considered.”
The Untold Story of the ‘Circle of Trust’ Behind the World’s First Gene-edited Babies ( [link removed] )
Jon Cohen, Science | 08.01.2019
A public relations specialist hired by He Jiankui has cataloged five dozen people who were not part of the controversial study but knew or suspected what He was doing before it became public. None of them spoke up publicly until after the news broke.
China Approves Ethics Advisory Group After CRISPR Babies Scandal ( [link removed] )
Hepeng Jia, Nature | 08.08.2019
The goals of the committee are to establish a coordinated, consistent system of ethics governance for science and technology, identify loopholes in the enforcement of regulations, and advise on appropriate punishments for those who violate the rules.
Why Human Germline Editing Might Never Be Legal in the U.S. ( [link removed] )
Jennifer M. Gumer, The Hastings Center Bioethics Forum | 08.09.2019
It’s unclear that clinical germline editing could ever satisfy the risk/benefit requirements of current research laws—a fact conspicuously absent from the CRISPR debates.
ANIMALS
-------------------------
Japan Approves First Human-Animal Embryo Experiments ( [link removed] )
David Cyranoski, Nature | 07.26.2019
Hiromitsu Nakauchi plans to grow human cells in mouse and rat embryos and then transplant those embryos into surrogate animals. His ultimate goal is to produce animals with organs that can be transplanted into people.
ASSISTED REPRODUCTIVE TECHNOLOGIES
-------------------------
The Former Medical Director of the Fertility Clinic That Mixed up 3 Couples’ Embryos Was Once Sued for Having a Sexual Relationship With One of His Patients ( [link removed] )
Ashley Collman, Business Insider | 07.12.2019
The CHA Fertility Center, currently in crisis over a massive IVF mix-up, has been at the center of an ethics scandal before.
Don’t Put All Your (Frozen) Eggs in One Basket ( [link removed] )
Ruthie Ackerman, The New York Times | 07.19.2019
The medical establishment sells women the fantasy that they can have it all, on their own schedule. In the case of this author and many other patients, it’s sadly not the case .
What Ever Happened to the Mysterious Nobel Prize Sperm Bank? ( [link removed] )
Anna Silman, The Cut | 08.01.2019
The “Nobel Prize Sperm Bank” was operational for 20 years, from 1979 to 1999; founder Robert Graham, an admirer of eugenics who believed the human race was getting progressively dumber, touted it as part of his plan to “save mankind.”
EUGENICS
-------------------------
What If an Algorithm Could Predict Your Unborn Child’s Intelligence? ( [link removed] )
Oscar Schwartz, OneZero | 07.09.2019
Genomic Prediction, a company founded by the controversial Michigan State University professor Stephen Hsu, is offering an embryo screening test that will inform parents about the risks of potential intellectual disability, defined as 25 points below the average IQ.
Alt-right Women and the “White Baby Challenge” ( [link removed] )
Alexandra Minna Stern, Salon | 07.14.2019
One response to “white extinction anxiety,” which stokes white nationalist fervor, is to produce many more white babies. As CGS Advisory Board member Alexandra Stern reports, white women are among the loudest voices advocating this strategy.
Jeffrey Epstein Hoped to Seed Human Race With His DNA ( [link removed] )
James B. Stewart, Matthew Goldstein & Jessica Silver-Greenberg, The New York Times | 07.31.2019
The late financier, who had been accused of sex trafficking, was also said to be obsessed with transhumanism and discussed his techno-eugenic plans with several prominent scientists, whose work he reportedly also supported financially.
Citing ‘Nerd Tunnel Vision,’ Biologist George Church Apologizes for Contacts With Jeffrey Epstein ( [link removed] )
Sharon Begley, STAT | 08.05.2019
The prominent Harvard University biologist says he regrets that he and other scientists weren’t more cautious in their dealings with the recently deceased Epstein, and notes that scientists are as vulnerable to flattery and attention from prominent people as anyone.
What Is Transhumanism and Why Do People Associate It With Eugenics? ( [link removed] )
Aditi Murti, The Swaddle | 08.07.2019
Transhumanism intends to use sophisticated technology to engineer and upgrade the human population’s intellect and physiology to superhuman levels.
GENOMICS
-------------------------
How White Nationalists See What They Want to See in DNA Tests ( [link removed] )
Heather Murphy, The New York Times | 07.12.2019
Even members of white supremacist groups who fail to meet their own genetic standards will sometimes share their ancestry genetic test results.
Senior Doctors Call for Crackdown on Home Genetic Testing Kits ( [link removed] )
Hannah Devlin, The Guardian | 07.21.2019
Doctors in the UK are seeing more and more patients who have been wrongly told they are carrying dangerous mutations linked to cancer or other devastating conditions.
23andMe Had Devastating News About My Health. I Wish a Person Had Delivered It ( [link removed] )
Dorothy Pomerantz, STAT | 08.08.2019
When consumers get their results from direct-to-consumer genetic testing companies, they may not know how to interpret them. In addition to being unsettling, this could lead to dangerous conclusions.
SOCIETY
-------------------------
We Should All Be Science Critics ( [link removed] )
John Hogan, Scientific American | 08.05.2019
Sheila Jasanoff of Harvard University’s Program on Science, Technology and Society explains why it’s important for scholars and academics to own their mistakes if science is truly to serve the public good.
STEM CELLS
-------------------------
California Stem-cell Agency’s Supporters Reveal Plan for $5.5-billion Ballot Initiative ( [link removed] )
Jonathan Lambert, Nature | 07.24.2019
CIRM’s supporters must convince roughly 620,000 voters to sign a petition in favor of placing the proposal on the ballot. If voters reject the plan, the agency’s path forward is unclear.
Wind-down of Stem-cell Institute Leaves a Void ( [link removed] )
Jeanne F. Loring, Nature | 08.07.2019
While the intentions may have been laudable, the California Institute for Regenerative Medicine inflated the public’s hopes and inadvertently helped to boost unregulated, for-profit clinics.
SURROGACY
-------------------------
Gay Couple Sues Over U.S. Refusal to Recognize Child as Citizen ( [link removed] )
NBC News | 07.24.2019
Americans Derek Mize and Jonathan Gregg are suing because their daughter Simone, born via surrogacy in England, is being denied U.S. citizenship
-------------------------
SUBSCRIBE ( [link removed] ) | WEBSITE ( [link removed] ) | ABOUT US ( [link removed] ) | WHO WE ARE ( [link removed] ) | CONTACT ( mailto:[email protected] )
( [link removed] )
-------------------------
This e-mail was sent to [email protected] by [email protected].
Center for Genetics & Society, 1122 University Ave., Suite 100, Berkeley, California 94702
If you no longer wish to receive commercial e-mail messages from [email protected], please select the following link: Remove ( [link removed] ).
SUBSCRIBE ( [link removed] ) | WEBSITE ( [link removed] ) | FACEBOOK ( [link removed] ) | TWITTER ( [link removed] ) | YOUTUBE ( [link removed] ) | DONATE ( [link removed] ) | CONTACT ( mailto:[email protected] )
COMMENTARY ( #comm )
CGS IN THE NEWS ( #media )
WHAT WE'RE READING ( #read )
( [link removed] )
Scientists Can’t Be Trusted on Gene Editing ( [link removed] )
What we can learn from the Jeffrey Epstein case? CGS’ Pete Shanks breaks it down.
[ COMMENTARY SECTION HEADER ]
Book Review: ‘Superior: The Return of Race Science’ ( [link removed] )
Pete Shanks, Biopolitical Times | 07.11.2019
In her latest book, science writer Angela Saini covers the appalling history of racism, worldwide and throughout known history. Her focus on contemporary uses of modern genetics as a prop for centuries-old racist biases makes this an invaluable resource.
-------------------------
CGS Statement on the Introduction of the Senate Resolution on Gene-editing Research ( [link removed] )
CGS Press Statement | 07.16.2019
A bipartisan Senate resolution introduced in July highlights the importance of international cooperation and broadly inclusive public deliberation in making the consequential decision about whether to allow heritable genome editing. Says CGS’ Katie Hasson, “We hope this resolution passes and that its passage serves as a catalyst for these deliberations.”
-------------------------
Disability Rights and Heritable Genome Editing: Resources for Teaching and Learning ( [link removed] )
Center for Genetics and Society, Biopolitical Times | 07.19.2019
Ableism distorts narratives about human biotechnologies. In light of Denis Rebrikov’s proposal to use human germline editing to prevent deafness, we compiled a selection of resources about disability and heritable gene editing.
[ COMMENTARY SECTION HEADER ]
The New Techno-Eugenics ( [link removed] )
Dan Cloer, Vision | 07.16.2019
CGS co-founder Richard Hayes discusses how our newfound power to manipulate the genes of future children compels us to answer foundational questions about whether we are using science and technology in ways that benefit the common good.
-------------------------
Bipartisan Resolution Urges Creation of International Gene-Editing Standards ( [link removed] )
Samara Rosenfeld, Inside Digital Health | 07.19.2019
The Senate resolution recognizes that the question of whether to proceed with heritable genome editing touches all of humanity. Says CGS’ Marcy Darnovsky, “We are at a tipping point with this issue, which is why this resolution is so important now.”
[ COMMENTARY SECTION HEADER ]
Animals ( #1 ) | Assisted Reproductive Technologies ( #2 ) | Eugenics ( #3 ) | Genomics ( #4 )
Heritable Gene Editing ( #5 ) | Society ( #6 ) | Stem Cells ( #7 ) | Surrogacy ( #8 )
HERITABLE GENE EDITING
-------------------------
Following ‘CRISPR Babies’ Scandal, Senators Call for International Gene Editing Guidelines ( [link removed] )
Andrew Joseph, STAT+ | 07.15.2019
A bipartisan trio of senators has introduced a resolution underscoring their opposition to the experiments last year in China that led to the birth of the world’s first genome-edited babies.
Nature Beyond Control: How Expectations Should Inform Decisions About Human Germline Engineering ( [link removed] )
Brendan Parent & Angela Turi, Journal of Assisted Reproduction and Genetics | 07.16.2019
Scant attention has been paid to whether human germline editing can be reconciled with psychological well-being. CGS fellow Brendan Parent and colleagues argue that our limited understanding of how genes interact would conflict with our expectations of the results this technology could actually produce.
Should the Rich Be Allowed to Buy the Best Genes? ( [link removed] )
Walter Isaacson, Air Mail | 07.27.2019
In this preview of his new book, author and scholar Walter Isaacson reports on the conversations he’s having about CRISPR and inequality as he travels across North America.
The World Health Organization Says No More Gene-edited Babies ( [link removed] )
Megan Molteni, Wired | 07.30.2019
The WHO’s director-general put out a statement urging “that regulatory authorities in all countries should not allow any further work in this area until its implications have been properly considered.”
The Untold Story of the ‘Circle of Trust’ Behind the World’s First Gene-edited Babies ( [link removed] )
Jon Cohen, Science | 08.01.2019
A public relations specialist hired by He Jiankui has cataloged five dozen people who were not part of the controversial study but knew or suspected what He was doing before it became public. None of them spoke up publicly until after the news broke.
China Approves Ethics Advisory Group After CRISPR Babies Scandal ( [link removed] )
Hepeng Jia, Nature | 08.08.2019
The goals of the committee are to establish a coordinated, consistent system of ethics governance for science and technology, identify loopholes in the enforcement of regulations, and advise on appropriate punishments for those who violate the rules.
Why Human Germline Editing Might Never Be Legal in the U.S. ( [link removed] )
Jennifer M. Gumer, The Hastings Center Bioethics Forum | 08.09.2019
It’s unclear that clinical germline editing could ever satisfy the risk/benefit requirements of current research laws—a fact conspicuously absent from the CRISPR debates.
ANIMALS
-------------------------
Japan Approves First Human-Animal Embryo Experiments ( [link removed] )
David Cyranoski, Nature | 07.26.2019
Hiromitsu Nakauchi plans to grow human cells in mouse and rat embryos and then transplant those embryos into surrogate animals. His ultimate goal is to produce animals with organs that can be transplanted into people.
ASSISTED REPRODUCTIVE TECHNOLOGIES
-------------------------
The Former Medical Director of the Fertility Clinic That Mixed up 3 Couples’ Embryos Was Once Sued for Having a Sexual Relationship With One of His Patients ( [link removed] )
Ashley Collman, Business Insider | 07.12.2019
The CHA Fertility Center, currently in crisis over a massive IVF mix-up, has been at the center of an ethics scandal before.
Don’t Put All Your (Frozen) Eggs in One Basket ( [link removed] )
Ruthie Ackerman, The New York Times | 07.19.2019
The medical establishment sells women the fantasy that they can have it all, on their own schedule. In the case of this author and many other patients, it’s sadly not the case .
What Ever Happened to the Mysterious Nobel Prize Sperm Bank? ( [link removed] )
Anna Silman, The Cut | 08.01.2019
The “Nobel Prize Sperm Bank” was operational for 20 years, from 1979 to 1999; founder Robert Graham, an admirer of eugenics who believed the human race was getting progressively dumber, touted it as part of his plan to “save mankind.”
EUGENICS
-------------------------
What If an Algorithm Could Predict Your Unborn Child’s Intelligence? ( [link removed] )
Oscar Schwartz, OneZero | 07.09.2019
Genomic Prediction, a company founded by the controversial Michigan State University professor Stephen Hsu, is offering an embryo screening test that will inform parents about the risks of potential intellectual disability, defined as 25 points below the average IQ.
Alt-right Women and the “White Baby Challenge” ( [link removed] )
Alexandra Minna Stern, Salon | 07.14.2019
One response to “white extinction anxiety,” which stokes white nationalist fervor, is to produce many more white babies. As CGS Advisory Board member Alexandra Stern reports, white women are among the loudest voices advocating this strategy.
Jeffrey Epstein Hoped to Seed Human Race With His DNA ( [link removed] )
James B. Stewart, Matthew Goldstein & Jessica Silver-Greenberg, The New York Times | 07.31.2019
The late financier, who had been accused of sex trafficking, was also said to be obsessed with transhumanism and discussed his techno-eugenic plans with several prominent scientists, whose work he reportedly also supported financially.
Citing ‘Nerd Tunnel Vision,’ Biologist George Church Apologizes for Contacts With Jeffrey Epstein ( [link removed] )
Sharon Begley, STAT | 08.05.2019
The prominent Harvard University biologist says he regrets that he and other scientists weren’t more cautious in their dealings with the recently deceased Epstein, and notes that scientists are as vulnerable to flattery and attention from prominent people as anyone.
What Is Transhumanism and Why Do People Associate It With Eugenics? ( [link removed] )
Aditi Murti, The Swaddle | 08.07.2019
Transhumanism intends to use sophisticated technology to engineer and upgrade the human population’s intellect and physiology to superhuman levels.
GENOMICS
-------------------------
How White Nationalists See What They Want to See in DNA Tests ( [link removed] )
Heather Murphy, The New York Times | 07.12.2019
Even members of white supremacist groups who fail to meet their own genetic standards will sometimes share their ancestry genetic test results.
Senior Doctors Call for Crackdown on Home Genetic Testing Kits ( [link removed] )
Hannah Devlin, The Guardian | 07.21.2019
Doctors in the UK are seeing more and more patients who have been wrongly told they are carrying dangerous mutations linked to cancer or other devastating conditions.
23andMe Had Devastating News About My Health. I Wish a Person Had Delivered It ( [link removed] )
Dorothy Pomerantz, STAT | 08.08.2019
When consumers get their results from direct-to-consumer genetic testing companies, they may not know how to interpret them. In addition to being unsettling, this could lead to dangerous conclusions.
SOCIETY
-------------------------
We Should All Be Science Critics ( [link removed] )
John Hogan, Scientific American | 08.05.2019
Sheila Jasanoff of Harvard University’s Program on Science, Technology and Society explains why it’s important for scholars and academics to own their mistakes if science is truly to serve the public good.
STEM CELLS
-------------------------
California Stem-cell Agency’s Supporters Reveal Plan for $5.5-billion Ballot Initiative ( [link removed] )
Jonathan Lambert, Nature | 07.24.2019
CIRM’s supporters must convince roughly 620,000 voters to sign a petition in favor of placing the proposal on the ballot. If voters reject the plan, the agency’s path forward is unclear.
Wind-down of Stem-cell Institute Leaves a Void ( [link removed] )
Jeanne F. Loring, Nature | 08.07.2019
While the intentions may have been laudable, the California Institute for Regenerative Medicine inflated the public’s hopes and inadvertently helped to boost unregulated, for-profit clinics.
SURROGACY
-------------------------
Gay Couple Sues Over U.S. Refusal to Recognize Child as Citizen ( [link removed] )
NBC News | 07.24.2019
Americans Derek Mize and Jonathan Gregg are suing because their daughter Simone, born via surrogacy in England, is being denied U.S. citizenship
-------------------------
SUBSCRIBE ( [link removed] ) | WEBSITE ( [link removed] ) | ABOUT US ( [link removed] ) | WHO WE ARE ( [link removed] ) | CONTACT ( mailto:[email protected] )
( [link removed] )
-------------------------
This e-mail was sent to [email protected] by [email protected].
Center for Genetics & Society, 1122 University Ave., Suite 100, Berkeley, California 94702
If you no longer wish to receive commercial e-mail messages from [email protected], please select the following link: Remove ( [link removed] ).
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