South Wairarapa Rebus Club

Rebus Club member, Dr David Woodhams, challenged the group’s August meeting to consider the ethical issues surrounding our developing capability of editing human genes.

Early genetic engineering involved the joining of DNA from different species and subsequently inserting the hybrid DNA into a host cell, often a bacterium. 

A common example, dating from 1978, is the production of insulin by bacteria into which the human insulin gene has been inserted. Until then, a single gram of insulin for treatment of diabetes, equivalent to about 28,800 units, required its extraction from eight kilograms of pancreas glands taken from more than 50 slaughtered pigs or cows. 

Another example, more controversial, is the development of crop plant varieties that are resistant to herbicide.

In 2002 the method which bacteria have evolved to make themselves immune to viral attack was discovered, known by the acronym CRISPR, and from this discovery scientists have learned to insert genetic material into human genes with convincing precision. 

There are two forms of genetic editing. 

One embraces treatment that influences the DNA only of the cells of an individual – the edit can’t be passed on to descendants – that’s somatic treatment. 

The other, germline editing, specifically includes the ability to pass on the edit to succeeding generations. Therein lie the ethical challenges.

Consider the deaf lesbian couple in the U.S. who advertised for a congenitally deaf sperm donor and had a deaf child. They considered their deafness to be part of who they were rather than something to be cured. Should they be criticised for making sure their child had a disability, or should they be praised for preserving a subculture that contributes to the diversity and perhaps even the empathy of society? 

Would it be different if they wanted a genetic procedure that would make their child more likely to be straight, or more likely to be gay? (There is no simple gay gene.) 

But likewise, being born black in America could be considered a disadvantage. A single gene has a major influence on determining skin colour. What if a set of black parents considers their race to be a social handicap and wants to edit that gene to produce light-skinned babies?

Such questions prompt us to look at disabilities and ask to what extent they are inherently disabling and to what extent the disadvantage is due to our social constructs and prejudices. 

The disadvantages from being deaf are very real. In contrast, any disadvantages from being gay or black are due to social attitudes that can and should be changed.

The possibilities arising from genetic “improvement” were explored in 1895 by HG Wells in The Time Machine (Eloi and working class Morlocks) and in 1932 by Aldous Huxley in Brave New World where “we decant our babies as socialised human beings, as Alphas or Epsilons, as future sewage workers or future…Directors of Hatcheries.” The dangers have indeed been explored.

Dr Woodhams was a stand-in speaker and the club’s newsletter editor. 

The South Wairarapa Rebus Club (https://southwairaraparebus.com) meets in the South Wairarapa Working Men’s Club at 9:45 a.m. on the fourth Friday of each month. 

Anyone in the retired age group who may be interested in SW Rebus Club is welcome to attend as a visitor. Please introduce yourself at the door from the rear carpark or contact: 

John Reeve 021 560 461.