Heritable Human Genome Editing

Produced by a joint commission of leading science advisory bodies in the USA and UK, this was the first major advisory report to be spurred by news that gene-edited twins had been born in China in 2018. While cautioning that relevant criteria for safety had not yet been met, the report sought to define a "responsible translational pathway" by which heritable human genome editing (HHGE) could be applied in a clinical setting. This pathway emphasizes a risk/benefit framework, balancing risks to individuals against the potential benefits of treating monogenic diseases. The report’s contributors include several researchers who had called for a moratorium on germline editing research. By moving from the proposal of a temporary voluntary moratorium in 2019 to the outline of a risk/benefit-defined responsible pathway to the clinical deployment of heritable human genome editing, these researchers took steps to circumscribe the relevant scope of concerns for governing germline editing and to make its eventual use seem inevitable.