A meeting at the FDA on experiments to create GMO humans has brought disturbing information to light. Action Alert!
Today, the US Food and Drug Administration held day one of a public meeting outlining the creation of genetically modified humans. These experiments won’t take place in the distant future. In fact, GMO embryos have already been created via in vitro experiments.
Specifically, the FDA is discussing the genetic manipulation of human eggs and embryos in order to prevent inherited mitochondrial disease and treat infertility. The GMO techniques under consideration include manipulation at the mitochondrial level to replace or augment mutant rDNA and methods that could create babies with three parents.
While the FDA has stated that the agency “recognizes” that there are “ethical and social policy issues” to be considered—and despite the fact that forty-four countries have already banned this kind of genetic manipulation—the FDA won’t bother to discuss if human clinical trials should take place (that’s considered to be “outside the scope” of the meeting). Instead, they’ll outline how such trials should be conducted.
Meeting participants will deliberate on what animal and in vitro studies (experiments that take place outside of a living organism) will be necessary before human experimentation, as well as the potential risks for study participants and “any children that result from such studies.”
For now, the desired genetic outcomes discussed will be limited to the prevention of inherited mitochondrial diseases (e.g., LHON) or infertility due to abnormalities in the quality and quantity of mitochondria in female eggs—though there is no scientific consensus on how important mitochondrial factors are to female infertility.
A bit of background on why mitochondria are the focus here: mitochondria are your cells’ “powerhouses” that, among other things, generate the energy (ATP) you need to survive. Mitochondria have their own DNA—called mtDNA—that is more prone to mutation than nucleic DNA. In fact, it is the accumulation of mitochondrial mutations that can contribute to aging, cancer, and metabolic diseases.
Some mutations in mtDNA can trigger mitochondrial disease, which can then be passed from mother to child (but not father to child). Due to a number of factors, it’s extremely difficult to predict how sick a child will become from its mother’s mitochondrial mutations. They could even be asymptomatic.
An FDA document outlines disturbing potential pitfalls of clinical trials to create GMO humans:
- Sex selection. Because female children produced from mitochondrial manipulation could still pass on mutant mtDNA, the use of “gender selection” could enter into human trials. This means scientists would specifically choose male embryos for implantation, while rejecting female embryos. This could set the stage for sex selection by the American public. The ramifications of sex selection are very real: in India and China, sex selection has led to a skewed ratio of men to women, which may, in turn, be contributing to violence against women.
- Three-parent babies. The FDA discusses the creation and study of “three-parent” embryos, in which the mutated mtDNA from Mom #1’s egg is replaced with healthy mtDNA from Mom #2 (which is then fused, via in vitro fertilization, with Dad’s sperm). This technology could “trigger all kinds of devastating problems (most likely through epigenetic changes)” that might not become evident until the fetus is already developing.
- Dangerous epigenetic changes. As we reported recently, epigenetics considers how outside influences (i.e., environmental factors) may affect the way genes are expressed. As noted above, studies show that techniques like mtRNA could cause unpredictable epigenetic changes in embryos, resulting in birth defects.
- Sick children. “Of particular concern” to the FDA is that it may be impossible to predict how genetic modification will affect a child until it is born. This means these seemingly inevitable GMO human experiments may lead to very sick children.
- The “Gattaca effect.” It’s easy to see how the concept of GMO humans could quickly get out of hand. Beyond sex selection, it’s foreseeable that such technology could be used to genetically engineer children with desirable physical and health traits. This also raises the question of the affordability of these therapies—might there come a day where only the super-rich could afford genetically perfect children?
One thing not mentioned in the FDA document is the risk that non-human genetic material could be added at some point. This is a truly terrifying thought—and a distinct possibility.
If you’re interested in virtually participating in tomorrow’s public meeting, you may do so online, via the FDA’s webcast link.
Action Alert! In keeping with our “favor nature” philosophy, ANH-USA thinks this is a potentially tragic road to go down. If you agree, you can send a message to the FDA here.
This is a dangerous development! These GMO embryos will be used for racial purification purposes which where sought in Germany in the 1930’s. This process should be stopped immediately. All it takes is ONE “scientist” or “company” to go rogue to bring “frankenpeople” on humankind.
This insanity has to stop.
Jana,
That may be a good thing – if we all become GMO people, then the pesticides we ingest from GMO foods may not kill us – could this be the next big step in human evolution? N O T !!!
Is there such a thing as genetically perfect?
No Frankenstein babies, please!
Please oppose GMO human studies
The thing that is extremely disturbing here is that this is being handled at all by FDA!! It seems to me that NIH and some other medical interests at the governmental level should be involved. I personally see this as medical research, not commercial or pharma related. FDA is not at all qualified to be involved in setting descriptions of trials involving human or animals in this area.
In what way?
The only thing I can think of that you may be referring to is where I put two exclamation points. It will not let me back in to take those out. If that is the problelm, please remove them and substitute a period. Thank you.
I can’t agree with you more. The FDA – particularly those at the top, are NOT the agency to do this, but I wouldn’t be surprised that the money has already been earmarked and testing has already occurred. It should not be done at all.
The FDA higher up mucky-mucks approved the drug Zohydro – which is more potent and lethal than oxicotin and vicodan.
On one hand, we’re told we have too much population and then on the other hand, there are those entities who are busy trying to make MORE population. more “perfect, designer children” .
Come on now – do you really believe this hasn’t been going on for at least twenty years now on the surface of this planet? Are you really that gullible to think that experiments have not been done and the products of those experiments are not walking amongst us? If so, I have a bridge from Alaska to Russia I’ll sell you for a very affordable price…
Please do not go down the path of genetically modifying cells to create living creatures, including humans. I strongly disapprove of this for because the possible harm to society and these creations out weighs the benefit. Let’s encourage people who are unable to conceive a child to adopt. Better yet, let’s encourage implement systems that so everyone has access to natural fresh, non-GMO & pesticide free foods. This, as well as other accepted healthy lifestyle changes should be enough. If not, adopt a beautiful human who needs love now.
I find this to be one of the most disturbing things I’ve ever read. It is morally and ethically unthinkable and wrong and should be outlawed at once. Have we completely lost our minds?!!
to Whom It May Concern:
Toying with the human body is no small wickedness, playing God is much worse!
There are severe consequences in trying to formulate Frankenstein monsters in the lab. There are those people who dream about castles in the sky, however, the FDA seems to be living in them quite comfortably.
Sincerely,
Ivars Loce
This is absolutely disgusting and immoral
They have gone too far this time There are some things YOU DO NOT TAMPER WITH. THIS IS ONE OF THEM. You have definitely cross the line here.
Some people are so desperate to have a child they are willing to create a genetic frankenbaby. This is sheer madness and the epitome of selfishness. They will take the chance of mutating genes and have they baby grow up (if at all) with a host of medical issues…just so they can be happy. If they want a child so badly I suggest adoption and you don’t even have to leave the country to find one.
This is an unknowable, dangerous experiment. It must be stopped.
This is indeed very frightening with all the possibilities mentioned above and the ones not yet considered. This will not only mean a new world but may mean the end of natural conception for people. As it is, many of today’s youth have fertility problems. I don’t think this will improve that problem but do think it will cause many others including the ones mentioned above.
Our Magnificent Creator created all food perfect. This is not acceptable to the elites who have destroyed our food with GMOs.
Our Wonderful Creator created perfect humans. This is not acceptable to the elites who want to play God and just like GMO foods will create suffering and DESTRUCTION. It is the ultimate in child abuse!
I’m afraid for our grandkids. In a few years parents will have no say in what the kids will be taught. They will have no knowledge of the past and will be easier led into all kinds of unethical programs..
God forbid!!!
The creator of life has given man the intelligence to understand and implement wonderful life giving, and sustaining medical technology. Making experimental babies is not one of them. Totally unethical – Life is to be respected. I know of a child with a mitochondrial disease. Why don’t physicians work on a solution to this and do something worthy for mankind?
GMO plants have resulted in defects. Maybe it’s best if we primates don’t mess w/ things we don’t understand, esp those that are infinitely complex, like life systems.
We have already seen that we are having problems with plants. What makes them think they can do better on a human? They think they create a great pesticides and people get sick, bees disappear, while GMO crops (made to endure it) are soaked with it. What are they going to do with the experiments gone bad on humans? People don’t want to go to the creator God for answers so they try to manipulate His creation and just keep on ruining it and themselves. Some simple things can be changed like cleaning filthy water and air, but trying to alter super complex living organisms without fully knowing all of the related issues is just a guessing game. Like taking a vitamin and then realizing years later that it needs more vitamins, amino acids, enzymes, minerals, and certain doses (more or less), shouldn’t be synthetic, needs to be taken with just water or with food and water to be effective. I mean that what we think is simple to start out with soon turns into a complex study. Like we use to say in school “you can turn anything into a science”. Referring to the technicality that can be inserted into the simplest activity like a game let alone the something of the depths what they are doing even if they think it is for “good” . It will like all things be manipulated by economics.
Brave New World- Aldous Huxley 1931
GOD intended natural creation only. Anything else is truly terrifying and devilish. I am against it hundred percent.
It’s too bad that you ‘favor nature’ stance is based on ignorance. GMO is NOT the same as GEO. The first is genetically modified, something humans and nature have been doing for thousands of years through cross-breeding. Genetic engineering is the insertion of genetic material into a chromosome of a different species. I am sure that this is what you are so afraid of.
When you take on a challenge where you purportedly ‘represent’ a large group of people, it is important to know what you are talking about, and you need to learn to say what you mean. Otherwise you come off as a bunch of wild-eyed extremists that run their show on emotion rather than intellect. In short, you look like fools.
As a scientist, I support the ‘Precautionary principle’ where something needs to be proven safe before it comes into general use. This is the opposite of the way that the U.S., for the most part, allows the results of scientific experimentation to be released until someone shows that it is unsafe.
It would be a shame and a disaster to have GMOs made illegal. Tomatoes, as we know them, broccoli, cauliflower, cabbage, nectarines, boysenberries, plums etc. would all be illegal to grow. That’s simply silly, but I can assure you that politicians who fail to make the distinction would be inclined to say or enact anything that would appease the voters, whether accurate or not. Please consider the consequences of your ‘loose cannon’ approach to a serious situation.
Natural selection, such as in the creation of a mule (which cannot reproduce I understand) is different than combining herbicides and pesticides into plants, or combining species that would never intermingle…… forced gene manipulation is another matter…. by the way, heir loom tomatoes are a lot better than most GMO tomatoes,and without the health risk. An interesting note: a mother and child exchange cells, so invitro babies with a donor mother are getting some cells and maybe genetic material from the carrying mother….just wondering…
There are too many variables impossble to control that could take this in a direction too horendous to contemplate. Leave it alone, people. Stop playing at being God. you’re already doing a very poor job of it.
The most dangerous administration in history again shows its ugliest side.
This “project” started under the first Bush administration. Do not assume without reason.
Don’t do this! This is insane! We are not God!
I understand the desire to attack health issues at conception. But genetic modification of both
humans and animals can and will produce unforeseen results that could be tragic. We need
to respect nature and trust evolution. If humans continue to blindly ignore their current negative impact on all of nature—human, animal, and environmental—then we will all perish.
Please do not experiment on human embryos for frivolous reasons.
I hope that this sick idea will never happened. GMO is a threat to any kind of living organism.
I believe that responsible scientist will never ever permit this to happened.
This is where I believe we need to differentiate between differing levels of Generic Modification.
GMO is a ‘catch all’ phrase with an incredible emotional component – but in fact we can be talking about (and I don’t claim to cover all the potential or actual options – just the ones which to me most reflex the differing levels of concern):
a.) Modifications to a plant where varying genetic material from other plants is added to achieve a perceived benefit.e.g.adding something from the DNA of an onion to make another food plant less susceptible to a predator.
b.) Modification to a human embryo to limit the potential for future disease, without introducing non-human material.
c.) Modification of plants by adding animal-based (whether human or non-human) material or DNA.
d.) Modification of plants to enable use of insecticide on crops (e.g. RoundUp Ready crops) where there is no possibility of an absolute guarantee of future safety.
e.) Creation of any medicinal substance intended, directly or indirectly,for application to or consumption by humans, that contains material or DNA from any other species. e.g. vaccines containing material or DNA from dogs, pigs, monkeys etc. and
f.) Modification of humans by the introduction of any non-human material or DNA, whether from plants, insects etc, or other life forms, by any and every means.
Each of these, and any other relevant possible option, should be separately defined and coded, whether by different ‘names; or by Use of Classes, e.g. GMO Class 1, Class 2 etc.
Without this differentiation it is impossible to sensible discuss issues such as those raised in the article above, because the emotional baggage of the more serious options clouds the decisions in other areas.
I am cynical enough to believe that this is one of the reasons that this obvious differentiation has not already been established in common usage!
It amazes me that amongst all these comments about the moral danger and the physical, mental and emotional dangers and implications of fumbling around with DNA (of the things that populate our world the danger of what they have already done is apparent in their MANY FAILURES trying to manipulate something they know almost nothing about. To think that they know EVERYTHING about what will happen if they combine this DNA with that DNA down the line is sheer IDIOCY!!! At the risk of sounding cheesy I’ll make this quote from Jurassic Park… “I’ll tell you the problem with the knowledge you’re using here. it didn’t take any discipline to attain it. You took what they learned and then you took the next step.There is incredible power here but You wield it like a kid who’s found his dad’s gun.”
Even the ones who are working on this now are still having to look back into notes taken by predecessors and on computer stations. Information gets corrupted just like a windows hard drive. The DNA that we are born with may not be perfect but it lasts our entire lives from birth to death and for the most part it’s a self correcting system. What THEY are doing is entering that self correcting system and introducing new bits of code and closing off others “THINKING” and believe me I use that term loosely, THINKING that what they do won’t have any negative consequences. REMEMBER! For every action there is an equal and opposite reaction. A statement made in the physics world but one that is relevant here as well.
I am all for using this technology to biologically-engineer organs to humans in need, but to fully artificially create a human being, end even worse, use DNA that is non-human to create some sort of cross-species being is a very scary and terrible idea. It is morally wrong to create a living being with the sole purpose of having them be an experiment. This living being could be created with all sorts of things to make it ill, be in pain, etc. and the scientists creating said living being will not have any proper knowledge on how to help this being overcome their suffering. This is cruel and a very dangerous road to go down. Once people can start selecting traits for their future children, they will without a doubt bring in all forms of prejudice to create what they picture to be “perfect.” The joy of life is appreciating what makes us different and unique and learning to be more open-minded.
Please, please only use this technology to help those that are already living treat whatever conditions they may be suffering from – use it to save lives, not experiment with new ones to make suffer and destroy.
I find it disturbing that the scientists involved will not even debate whether this should be done; only how to do it. This needs to be a public discussion–one in the light of day.
Serious ethical violations looming!!!
Serious is an understatement. We will now be “As in the Days of Noah.” Fear what it will usher in.
As usual our govt. and its agencies do just as their puppet masters instruct with orders printed on tons of greenback dollars stolen from the public coffers. If the public knew of all the diabolical and deadly deeds done in our name around the World for the profits of immoral and psychopathic corporations they would be in transit to DC NOW! The Money and minds running and ruining this country are of the most evil and despicable DNA . We have become the New!
I have to disagree with you guys on this one. This isn’t Monsanto trying to maximize profit at the expense of human health. This is real science trying to push forward in its understanding of our world. This understanding might scare you but falling back on some “favor nature” philosophy is ridiculous. Science does favor nature. In fact, science is the study of nature.
I favor the internet over grunting in your general direction. I favor embryonic science over unsubstantiated fears. If we can re-create our race devoid of genetic disorders and unnecessary suffering, how on EARTH is not a massive advancement in medicine?
There is a reason for disease and plight. If this happens then what stops someone from not only making the perfect but the everlasting (living to more than 100). The world would not be able to handle that. We are over populated as it is. Disease is inevitable whether perfectly created or not. Why mess with mother nature. I work in science and cannot find this to be an advancement but the end to mere existence as we know it.
GM chimps will be engineered after the apocalypse. In the year 3070 , the engineered “MEEK” will create a genetic bomb. By 3100 homo sapiens will be wiped off earth.
The meek will have high inteligence and lifespan. The intent of the GM chimps is enslavement.
In the current time period , expect a genetic bomb to kill a third of the humans
This will open up the floodgates to people wanting to make “perfect” humans.
“Perfect” can be strong but compliant and without morals (for the military which they already have a track record of trying to make with drugs and psychological tactics often without the people knowing, there will be people wanting strong stupid people for various work, some wanting pretty or tall or blue eyed. People already go to sperm & egg banks try to have children that will be business execs or musicians or leaders. That already goes on, and there would be no danger or abuse of the technology?
Let’s just put aside that the unbridled arrogance of many researchers who constantly and consistently and with out fail always say that … “NOW we know all there is, yes in the past we said that but found there was much we did not know but NOW we know it all, everything we say, everything we do is perfectly under control as NOW we know it all” Then we find they didn’t and that the world suffers in some way from their stating as fact what they want to believe (or what they want us or you to believe).
Let us put aside how we don’t understand DNA completely and that changing one thing may easily change another today or 20 years down the line.
Let us put aside all of that and just look at what will be done with this technology if it is allowed….there will be military, government, corporate and plain old people wanting to “order” a model “X” human or a model “Y”.
As in: “Honey, do we want to order a CEO or a President?”
or
“Honey, you love football so much, how about our next son is a big huge linebacker?”
or
“General, we ordered that when any enlisted troops become pregnant that they make sure their Drs make certain they produce good strong order following people perfect for the front lines of whatever war we have in 18 years”
You have no problem with that?
Or do you doubt people would do that?
Specific genes or parts of DNA can be connected with other traits in unknown ways and unknown effects can arise from manipulation.
They will say that they can eradicate something like autism & not bother to mention that they don’t know for certain what else will be changed. They will forget to mention that virtually every geneticist actually uses the term “junk DNA” for the parts they THINK have no affect on anything. That right there is alarming beyond belief.
Religion teaches us that we must not play “God”. Science teaches us two things there’s always cause and reaction. Medicine may have gotten us to live longer and over populate but there are a million “bad drug/procedure” lawsuits advertised every day. Sci-fi (how fiction is it these days?) teaches us that genetically altering humans causes killer super humans, outcasts, or world destruction.. I guess you can take your pick there….
You are all entirely missing the point. The aim is the creation of mindless drones, human beasts of burden. And of course the universal soldier.
You already know how far you can trust the FDA…… who will provide a soul for these unfortunate creatures. Your government will make slaves of them and use them against you.
When will America wake up and take back their power. It’s almost too late now >>>>>
Quit spreading Fear!! You’re worse than the Mainstream Media.
This is NOT spreading fear. Why do you think 47 countries have already banned this???
I don’t think any our presidents, except the present one would have nothing to do with this. I know our world is going to the dogs. Please speak-up and let voice be heard. Things are not great. Maybe that is why we have so much trouble.