Behavior Boundary Of Human Gene Editing

In the world’s first "gene editing baby incident",in order to prevent the baby from inheriting her father’s AIDS-positive gene,He Jiankui’s team modified the genetic sequence of the twin female babies,intending to make the baby naturally resistant to AIDS after birth.It has caused an uproar in the legal and sociological circles,that is,is the act of editing human genes ethical and legal? Gene editing technology is essentially a "right medicine" precision treatment technology,the current economical,fast and convenient CRISPR-Cass9 technology,known as "gene magic scissors",and won the Nobel Prize in Chemistry in 2020,the emergence of this technology makes the wide application of gene editing technology possible,and it is of practical significance to explore the behavioral boundaries of human gene editing technology.At present,whether human genome editing can be applied has been debated in the academic circle.At present,there are three main theories about the legal limit of human genome editing:prohibition,permission and partial permission.The doctrine of prohibition claims that human genome editing cannot be used.This technology is an infringement of human subject status.It believes that any form of genome editing technology used on human beings is immoral.Permissibility theory claims that human genome editing can be applied regardless of gene enhancement(becoming a "better" person)or gene therapy(correcting defective genes),which is conducive to the prosperity and development of human beings.Human life is only once,and the potential of life should be fully realized.The theory of partial permission claims that human genome editing technology can only be applied under certain conditions,that is,gene therapy-human genome editing technology can only be used in the context of correcting defective genes in order to avoid the inheritance of serious genetic diseases by future generations.Human genome editing technology is a major breakthrough in the field of life science and technology.It has milestone significance in the history of human development,and will also be the focus of scientific innovation in the world in the future.Natural science itself does not have a distinction between "good" or "bad".The key lies in how it is used to make it applicable within the context of legal ethics,social morality,and human development,benefiting human society.In response to the rapid development of genome editing technology,China’s Civil Code and the Eleventh Amendment to the Criminal Law also stipulate the medical and scientific research activities of human genes and genome editing.However,as two basic laws,the Civil Code and the Criminal Law cannot make highly operational provisions on emerging science and technology.Objectively,the legal provisions are too general and lack of operability.At present,the legal supervision of human genome editing behavior is not perfect,and it is difficult to accurately determine whether the specific case of genome editing behavior has caused serious damage to human health,ethics,and public interests.At the same time,if the application of human genome editing technology is not clear about the boundary and is used in the field of gene enhancement,it will lead to the confrontation between the edited and the unedited,resulting in "everyone is born unequal",affecting social fairness,justice and intergenerational interests.The legitimacy of human genome editing for the purpose of treatment lies in its ability to maintain human dignity,that is,to protect the right to life,body,health of the edited,and the parents’ reproductive rights and parenting freedom.Human genome editing for the purpose of treatment should be defined as gene equality,correction of human gene defects rather than any form of gene enhancement,and at the same time,the rights of editors to enjoy an "open future" and promote the prosperity and development of human society should be guaranteed.However,due to the ethical specificity of this technology,which focuses on human genes,attention should be paid to social and technological risk prevention and control.Relevant legislation should advocate prudence,establish a risk benefit evaluation system,and strictly control risks.In terms of concrete realization,the private law boundary of scientific research freedom of scientific research and medical personnel should be clarified.Scientific research freedom is a basic right expressly stipulated in the Constitution of China.It should support that human genome editing technology is free in the field of basic research,but its clinical application should be strictly restricted.At the same time,legal supervision should be strengthened on the implementation of human genome editing,so as to realize that science and technology can be used for people and benefit human society.