World's first genetically engineered human embryo

According to a story in the New York Times:

Researchers in New York have created what is believed to be the first genetically engineered human embryo, which critics immediately branded as a step toward “designer babies.”

[While doctors have previously] put foreign genes into people as part of gene therapy to treat diseases ... those genetic changes generally cannot be passed on to future generations because they are made to only certain types of cells in the body, like blood cells or muscle cells. Genetic changes made to an embryo would theoretically be heritable if the embryo became a baby.

[Critics responded that] the techniques being developed could be used by others to create babies with genes modified to make them smarter, taller, more athletic or better looking. They also said there should have been more public discussion.

Comments

[Human Clone]

Nice blog btw ! :)

[Human Clone]

Too soon to talk about smarter, taller, more athletic or better looking babies in my opinion. We should be aware about potential bad consequences that could arise from all this practices first !