Genetically modified animals are a common practice in many fields of science and there is a need to explain the reasoning behind why gene editing in animals is even needed and the ethical explanation for it. This paper reviewed 115 articles to determine their arguments for and against animal gene editing. The most widely described reason was for the applications of modified animals for questions of human health. Other arguments included the efficiency of gene editing for producing organisms that are more beneficial for human life, such as editing disease-carrying mosquitoes. Arguments concerning using gene edited animals to increase animal welfare and improve the environment had both supporters and detractors. Supporters for the animal welfare argument claim that animals could be edited to feel less pain, while others say that it could result in increased numbers of transgenic animals killed for science. For the environmentalist argument, supporters claim that gene editing could be used for as an alternative for insecticides; others claim that gene editing in livestock could increase greenhouse gas production. Overall, the question of why gene editing is necessary is still contentious, even as its use continues to grow.
Audrey Tjahjadi
Link to original article:
https://royalsocietypublishing.org/doi/pdf/10.1098/rstb.2018.0106
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