“Questions & Answers about CRISPR”–Eminent Physician-Scientist Comments on Powerful Applications and Potential Risks of New Gene Editing Technology

by R. Sanders Williams, M.D., President, Gladstone Institutes, San Franciso, California [BQ Editor’s Note: Gladstone Institutes has kindly granted BioQuick Online News the right to reprint an opinion article on the CRISPR gene editing technology authored by Gladstone Institutes president R. Sanders Williams, M.D. The article was published on September 23, 2015 on the organization's website (https://gladstone.org/about-us/news/questions-and-answers-about-crispr). In addition to his role as president, Dr. Williams is Gladstone's Robert W. and Linda L. Mahley Distinguished Professor, and he is also a Professor of Medicine at the University of California, San Francisco (UCSF). In this article, Dr. Williams outlines the powerful existing and potential applications of CRISPR technology, while also cautioning about certain risks that must be borne in mind. In particular, he calls for a moratorium on gene editing to alter the human germline until the CRISPR technology is fully understood and perfected, and until a broad consensus on guidelines for responsible use can be achieved Dr. Gladstone’s article is reproduced in full below.]