The ability to experiment with the genetic code at home creates the risk of organisms with unwanted properties. This is stated in the report of the UK Bioethics Council, reports The Guardian.
Experts are concerned that genetic engineering tools have become widely available, leading to the emergence of biohackers - "garage" amateur biotechnologists. For example, one of the firms began selling a cheap kit (costing 100 euros) to create Escherichia coli, which is resistant to the antibiotic streptomycin.
The council's report also says DNA-altering technologies have become so powerful that national governments must decide in advance whether researchers should be allowed to modify humans as a species.
Although the creation of GM humans will only be possible in the future, experts believe that the benefits and risks of modifying the human genome require urgent assessment now. Genetic engineering will block such hereditary diseases as cystic fibrosis, as well as create disease-resistant farm animals and plants. However, the commission expressed concern that such procedures could "open the door to liberal eugenics" when children are modified according to parental preferences.
