Why Democrats reopened the debate about germline gene editing
WASHINGTON — A rogue Chinese scientist stunned the world last year when he announced the birth of genetically modified twin girls, prompting widespread outcry from the broader scientific community and calls for a “global moratorium” on editing human embryos that result in births.
Yet months later, Democrats on Capitol Hill surprised many science policy experts when they attempted to roll back a related, 4-year-old ban on altering the DNA of embryos intended for pregnancies.
To many health policy experts here, and research advocates across the country, the timing — just months after the biggest genome editing scandal in world history — was inexplicable. Several Republicans criticized the proposal by playing up concerns of “maverick bioengineers” operating with little oversight and without ethical norms. And while some scientists supported the
