This research is about genetic studies that show significant DNA reshuffling and deletions. Such editing has led to concerns about safety regarding genome editing that could be passed down to generations. From the experiments conducted, it has been revealed that using CRISPR-Cas9 to modify human embryo genome can cause unwanted changes at or near the target site. These studies, therefore, also give scientists a breakthrough into the underappreciated risks of CRISPR-Cas9 editing. Besides, the tool can cause off-target mutation away from targeted site. However, the effects caused on the target site are the most important and challenging to eliminate (Ledford, 2020). One other limitation of CRISPR-Cas9 editing is that the scientists do not know what is happening in there before they send DNA-cutting enzymes. Moreover, there is very little known about how the human embryo repairs the parts of the genome cut by DNA-cutting tools. As a result, there has been controversies on whether or not scientists should perform editing on human embryos to eliminate various kinds of genetic disease.
Gene editing creates permanent changes that can be transferred on to generations. The benefit is that genetic diseases like sickle-cell, Huntington's, Alzheimer's, as well as heart diseases. These diseases, among others, are life-threatening and can be passed on to generations. However, these studies are strictly regulated and are still rare, which may be due to the high costs of doing such experiments (Ledford, 2020) . Since there is still very little known about how this genetic editing takes place and the process is a trial and error leading to many unwanted effects, scientists should put their great focus on this. Besides, it is a matter of great concern since scientists cannot control the editing and the outcomes which have very high chances of leading to even worse effects.
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In conclusion, CRISPR-Cas9 editing should attract more focus than it has. More should be done to understand what takes place in the embryo genomes before hitting it with genome cutting tools. Besides, scientists have to work harder to control the outcomes of genetic editing to avoid the adverse outcomes and hence make the experiment a success.
Reference
Ledford, H. (2020, June 25). CRISPR gene editing in human embryos wreaks chromosomal mayhem . Retrieved from Nature: https://www.nature.com/articles/d41586-020-01906-4
