As genetic engineering and DNA manipulation tools like CRISPR continue to advance, the distinction between what science ‘could’ and ‘should’ do becomes murkier.
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Articles on Genetic engineering
Displaying 1 - 20 of 32 articles
Recent successes putting genetically modified pig organs into people have brought xenotransplantation back into the spotlight.
There’s a new label on many US food products – here’s what it means and who pushed to add it.
An expert on organic agriculture argues that the US is missing an economic and environmental opportunity by not working to scale up organic production.
Solutions to some of the globe’s most daunting environmental challenges may be closer than you think. Scientists are harnessing nature to clean up toxic chemicals and mining waste.
Researchers have grown the first human-monkey hybrid embryos as well as mouse embryos in artificial wombs late into development. These biomedical breakthroughs raise different ethical quandaries.
New research involving CRISPR technology has furthered our understanding of corals’ gene functions. Specifically, it has revealed a mechanism underpinning how corals withstand heat stress.
The evidence suggests the novel coronavirus evolved naturally.
The conspiracy theory that Covid-19 was created in a laboratory has been widely reported, yet there is no evidence to support it. Why such theories thrive can easily be explained, however.
Human changes to the living world have benefited us, but the ecological consequences are mounting.
The FDA has given the green light to sell the first genetically engineered animal – farmed salmon –in the US.
Is gene editing compatible with organic farming? A scholar explains the differences between old genetic engineering and CRISPR methods, and why the latter is similar to tradition plant breeding.
Right now, you’re living in a kind of industrial revolution – where biotechnology, information technology, manufacturing and automation all come together to form synthetic biology.
Scientists have engineered sugarcane to increase its oil content and are developing renewable jet aircraft fuel from the oil. The engineered sugarcane could become a valuable energy crop.
Inserting a random DNA mishmash into a plant or bacterium directs it to make a novel protein. Sifting through the resulting molecules, researchers may find ones have medical or agricultural uses.
Americans have moved on from worrying about ‘test-tube babies’ – but there are still ethical challenges to resolve as reproductive technologies continue to advance.
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.
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.
The crops of the future must become much better at dealing with dehydration.
Every single Cavendish banana plant worldwide is genetically identical. This vast monoculture sets them up for disastrous disease outbreaks. But researchers have ideas on how to protect the crop.
Top contributors
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John Long is a Friend of The Conversation.Strategic Professor in Palaeontology, Flinders University
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Executive Director, Swette Center for Sustainable Food Systems, Arizona State University
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Research Leader, Sport, Institute of Sport, Exercise and Active Living, Victoria University
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CEO, Australian Centre for Plant Functional Genomics
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Professor of Bioethics, University of Sydney
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Personal Chair in Synthetic Biological Engineering, University of Edinburgh
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Professor of Responsible Innovation, Arizona State University
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Adjunct associate, Flinders University
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Professor of Molecular Genetics and Microbiology, University of Florida
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Professor of Ethics, Keele University
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Senior Research Fellow, Agroecological Futures, Coventry University
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Professor of Philosophy and Integrative Biology, The University of Texas at Austin College of Liberal Arts
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Professor of Horticultural Sciences and Plant Molecular and Cellular Biology, University of Florida
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Visiting Fellow (Molecular and Cellular Biology), University of Leeds
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Associate Professor of Rural Sociology and Science, Technology, and Society, Penn State
