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Biohackers Disregard FDA Warning on DIY Gene Therapy

posted by Fnord666 on Monday December 04 2017, @11:14AM   Printer-friendly
from the what-could-possibly-go-wrong dept.

Phoenix666 writes:

"Cease & Desist" has not worked:

Despite a warning from the federal government about do-it-yourself gene therapy, two companies say they'll continue offering DNA-altering materials to the public.

The companies, The Odin and Ascendance Biomedical, both recently posted videos online of people self-administering DNA molecules their labs had produced.

Following wide distribution of the videos, the U.S. Food and Drug Administration last week issued a harshly worded statement cautioning consumers against DIY gene-therapy kits and calling their sale illegal. "The sale of these products is against the law. FDA is concerned about the safety risks involved," the agency said.

Does the Executive Branch want the market to decide, or not?

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  • (Score: 3, Interesting) by takyon on Monday December 04 2017, @09:08PM (1 child)

    by takyon (881) <takyonNO@SPAMsoylentnews.org> on Monday December 04 2017, @09:08PM (#605295) Journal

    I'm not interested in safety mechanisms (also known as anti-science restrictions). I want innovation in bioengineering.

    People and companies already engage in risky behaviors that make diseases worse. For example, using too many antibiotics or using them incorrectly, or dumping medical waste products into rivers [theguardian.com]. Or hitting that Tinder/Grindr. By comparison, genemodding your own body is not likely to create a supervirus. Viruses are already great at mutating anyway. Altering a virus with the intent to make it more virulent could be an issue, and it's already leading to censorship or self-censorship [time.com].

    This technology will not be as easy to regulate as something like nuclear material, or even firearms (you can get some biological material through detectors, or just infect yourself). If the government wants to do something about this, they should pump more money into the CDC, NIH, etc. to create a universal flu cure or something.

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  • (Score: 0) by Anonymous Coward on Tuesday December 05 2017, @04:57AM

    by Anonymous Coward on Tuesday December 05 2017, @04:57AM (#605511)

    its good to want.