Ethics are important to vaccination decisions because while science can clarify some of the costs and benefits, it cannot tell us which costs and benefits matter most to us.
THE CANADIAN PRESS/Frank Gunn
When making the decision whether to vaccinate children aged five to 11 against COVID-19, regulators in Canada must rely on sound ethics as well as sound science.
Medical research to benefit people is first conducted in animals. Creating a new biomedical model by inserting human immune cells into pigs may lead to new insights and treatments.
Ofer Raban, University of Oregon and Yuval Dor, Hebrew University of Jerusalem
Conventional trials to test coronavirus vaccines are paradoxically slowed down by actions to curb the disease’s spread. Human challenge trials are more controversial, but could speed up the process.
Trying to maximise lives saved will inevitably be contentious and imperfect.
Monaco and Japan have some of the highest life expectancies in the world. But calculating an individual’s life expectancy will require taking data analysis several steps further.
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Predicting life expectancy remains in the realm of science fiction, but it may soon be possible. Are we prepared for such information? And who else would benefit from this knowledge?
Researchers are developing artificial wombs as we speak. So we need to talk about the pros and cons before science fiction becomes reality.
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Yes, there are pros and cons of this new reproductive technology. But there are many other issues about maternal and child health we need to tackle first.
It may not be science fiction anymore.
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A team in the U.S. is said to have safely and effectively altered human embryos. The news is a reminder that citizens must be consulted on developments potentially affecting the future of the species.
There’s still a way to go from editing single-cell embryos to a full-term ‘designer baby.’
ZEISS Microscopy
The news may have come as a surprise, but it probably shouldn’t have. A bioethics expert walks through how big a deal this announcement is – and what we should be considering now.
Supporters outside the now-abandoned case in the British High Court, rallying for infant Charlie Gard to travel to the US for experimental treatment.
Peter Nicholls/Reuters
BCI devices that read minds and act on intentions can change lives for the better. But they could also be put to nefarious use in the not-too-distant future. Now’s the time to think about risks.
Scientists have made a massive breakthrough.
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Maybe you think neuroscience has a peaceable history of benign efforts to improve lives and enhance human capacities. But its origins and development tell a different story – with ethical implications.
Cryonics has gone from the world of sci-fi movies to the law courts for the family of one 14-year-old girl.
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A UK court has allowed a 14-year-old girl’s body to be frozen until doctors find a cure for the cancer that killed her. Is this latest example of cryogenics hope, hype or hell?
Parents’ role as medical decision-makers is sometimes questioned when they don’t choose the recommended treatment for their child.
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It is ethical for doctors to accept a treatment option parents want – providing it is good enough – rather than insisting on what they believe is the best possible treatment for the child.
Will China be the first to genetically enhance future generations?
Jianan Yu/Reuters
Regulations, funding and public opinion around genetically enhancing future generations vary from country to country. Here’s why China may be poised to be the pioneer.
Visiting Professor in Biomedical Ethics, Murdoch Children's Research Institute; Distinguished Visiting Professor in Law, University of Melbourne; Uehiro Chair in Practical Ethics, University of Oxford
Adjunct Assistant Professor of Neurology at Oregon Health and Sciences University and Affiliate Assistant Professor of Philosophy, University of Washington