Abuhammad Sawsan, Khabour Omar F, Alzoubi Karem H
Dept. of Maternal and Child Health, Jordan University of Science and Technology, Irbid 22110, Jordan.
Dept. of Medical Laboratory Sciences, Jordan University of Science and Technology, Irbid 22110, Jordan.
Heliyon. 2021 Apr 23;7(4):e06860. doi: 10.1016/j.heliyon.2021.e06860. eCollection 2021 Apr.
The development of gene editing technologies is very promising for the treatment of genetic diseases. However, gene editing can be also used to enhance the characteristics of healthy individuals. This study aims to determine ethical challenges that may face the constitution of gene editing in the Middle East and North Africa (MENA) region.
An online discussion forum about the ethical challenges of applying gene editing technologies was held. The participants were a group of researchers (n = 28) from the MENA region.
Most of the participants agreed on the importance of gene editing for the treatment of genetic diseases. However, participants had concerns regarding the use of gene editing to enhance the characteristics of healthy individuals such as athletic abilities and intelligence. Among ethical issues that were raised are justice, harm, beneficence, discrimination, conflict with religion and culture, and lack of regulations.
Several ethical issues were raised for using gene editing technologies based on the perception of biomedical researchers from the MENA region. Therefore, the scientific community and other interested bioethical, social, legal, and governmental parties should be provided with a detailed guide from the scientists in this area for future uses of this technology.
基因编辑技术的发展在治疗遗传疾病方面前景广阔。然而，基因编辑也可用于增强健康个体的特征。本研究旨在确定中东和北非（MENA）地区在基因编辑构成方面可能面临的伦理挑战。
举办了一个关于应用基因编辑技术的伦理挑战的在线讨论论坛。参与者是来自MENA地区的一组研究人员（n = 28）。
大多数参与者认同基因编辑在治疗遗传疾病方面的重要性。然而，参与者对利用基因编辑来增强健康个体的特征，如运动能力和智力表示担忧。所提出的伦理问题包括正义、伤害、行善、歧视、与宗教和文化的冲突以及缺乏监管。
基于MENA地区生物医学研究人员的认知，使用基因编辑技术引发了若干伦理问题。因此，科学界以及其他感兴趣的生物伦理、社会、法律和政府各方应获得该领域科学家提供的详细指南，以便未来使用这项技术。
