Genetic changes in unborn children – Ethics Council does not rule out future application

In China, with the help of the Chinese scientist He Jiankui, so-called "designer babies" were born: two twin girls who are supposed to be protected from the HIV virus for life through prenatal genetic modification of their genes. The German Ethics Council has now issued a statement on such genetic modifications in unborn children. Due to the incalculable risks involved, it considers targeted genetic modifications of the genome of unborn children to be inadmissible until further notice. Surprisingly, however, was the statement that such so-called germline interventions cannot be ethically ruled out in principle. In particular, the statement calls for a debate in Germany on the sufficient safety and effectiveness of such interventions. The chairman of the council, theologian Peter Darbrock of the University of Erlangen-Nuremberg, sees the statement more as an assessment of risks and opportunities. Specifically, the committee identifies ethnic standards that define the limits of scientific development. These include, in particular, human dignity, the protection of life, freedom and naturalness, the avoidance of harm, justice and solidarity, and responsibility. While the statement contains critical remarks, it does not stipulate the inviolability of the human germ line. The panel's ethnic criteria serve as a "red line" calling for adherence to accepted standards. Despite the declaration of inadmissibility, the Ethics Council no longer completely rules out the use of GMOs on the human organism in adaptation to global developments. Initiating a Germany-wide debate on risks and opportunities is an important step toward the approval and acceptance of GMO procedures within permissible limits.