Ethical and regulatory issues in human gene editing: Chinese perspective.

Abstract

This paper focuses on the ethical and regulatory issues raised by gene editing. In the introduction of this paper, authors provide the background where the ethical and regulatory issues by gene editing have been raised including the scientific dimension of gene-editing techniques. In the second part of the paper, the authors focus on ethical issues in human gene editing with the start of Huang Junjiu case and He Jiankui case. Here, the authors discuss the criteria for evaluating action, general ethical issues in gene editing, and try to answer two crucial questions: is it ethically justifiable to use human embryo in ex vivo genome editing study and is it ethically justifiable to perform heritable human genome editing? In answering the second question, the authors discuss the arguments against and for heritable human genome editing, methodological problem, and the building of an ethical framework for heritable human genome editing. In the third part of the paper, the authors focus on regulatory issues in gene editing including proactionary approach versus ethically thinking ahead approach, self-regulation versus top-down regulation, transparency versus confidentiality, and education versus punishment.