Is gene editing a cure-all or catastrophe?

Have we become too smart for our own good?

I’m sure you’ve heard about what’s been called the biggest scientific advancement of the century, CRISPR (pronounced as if you were talking about very crunchy potato chips!).

In a nutshell, CRISPR is a relatively “easy” way to edit genes. The ability to do genetic editing isn’t new – but CRISPR makes it faster and much simpler. Like scissors cutting a length of ribbon, this technique cuts DNA to remove undesired traits or diseases. And it can be done in plants… farm animals… and people.

The scientific world is all agog with the promise of this technology. Certainly, the thought of being able to banish horrible ailments to the scrap heap of medicine would be one of mankind’s greatest achievements.

But unfortunately, it seems that whenever we start playing God, unintended consequences start cropping up – which is exactly what’s happening with CRISPR.

And although it’s moving along at breakneck speed – with human trials in the U.S. expected to start this year — there’s still a lot about this that we just don’t know, especially when it comes to what the long-term risks may be.

It’s possible, as two new studies have just discovered, that instead of making things better, CRISPR may very well be setting the stage for disaster.

‘Ticking time bombs’

If you haven’t been closely following the CRISPR story, you may not realize how far it’s already gone.

For example, U.S. scientists managed to use it to edit the genes of human embryos last summer. It was just a laboratory experiment — or so they said – and those embryos, the very beginnings of human lives, were destroyed after a few days.

And in China, it has been reported that 86 people have already had the CRISPR technique used to edit their genes. Of that number, we’ve heard that three dozen were cancer patients whose cells were altered using the process… then put back into their bodies.

Nothing, however, has been released from Chinese officials yet about what’s become of those patients.

But while even the hint of a cure for cancer is beyond exciting, recent news about CRISPR is telling us that this technology might not yet be ready for prime time.

Two new studies by scientists across the globe – the best and the brightest in the world of biochemistry – have found a frightening after-effect of the CRISPR process.

You see, not all cells are that easy to edit. Many have an “alarm system” that will activate a protein called p53 when cut. And that triggers what one of the researchers described as a “cellular first-aid kit” that jumps into action to repair damaged (or edited) cells.

As you can guess, that makes the CRISPR process “much more difficult.”

But not all cells have that ability. In fact, to realize the importance of that “fixing” trigger, it’s missing in around 50 percent of cancer cells.

So, that leaves scientists with two choices: block that p53 protein in healthy cells or edit the ones that don’t appear able to put that self-repair mechanism into action.

Either way, as an expert put it, this process could turn some “CRISPR’d cells into ticking time bombs,” triggering cancer and other diseases.

And scientists are taking these findings very seriously, with one who asked to remain anonymous calling them “pretty striking.” Why, even the CEO of a company called CRISPR Therapeutics, told a reporter that those results are “plausible.”

So, as we forge ahead with this brave new technology, instead of saving lives, we could actually be creating more pain and suffering.

As I said, experts in this field appear to be very concerned. But the fact that CRISPR holds the promise of vast wealth for any company that continues to forge ahead with the technology means that we won’t be putting the brakes on it any time soon. It certainly wouldn’t be the first time science was led by a promise instead of its potential for disaster.

And even though it may seem that CRISPR won’t be available to the general public soon, you never know how the pace of things can pick up when untold riches are on the horizon. I wouldn’t even be surprised if television ads started running to get us ready!

Perhaps, however, it’s time to take a step back, and learn more about all of the potential consequences involved before rushing ahead with this giant genetic leap into the unknown.

“2 studies show CRISPR might drive up cancer risk in edited cells” Amirah Al Idrus” June 12, 2018, FierceBiotech, fiercebiotech.com