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. 2021 Jul;39(1):60-67.
doi: 10.1007/s40592-021-00129-1. Epub 2021 May 25.

Can 'eugenics' be defended?

Walter Veit  1 , Jonathan Anomaly  2 , Nicholas Agar  3 , Peter Singer  4 , Diana S Fleischman  5 , Francesca Minerva  6   7
Affiliations

Can 'eugenics' be defended?

Walter Veit et al. Monash Bioeth Rev. 2021 Jul.

Abstract

In recent years, bioethical discourse around the topic of 'genetic enhancement' has become increasingly politicized. We fear there is too much focus on the semantic question of whether we should call particular practices and emerging bio-technologies such as CRISPR 'eugenics', rather than the more important question of how we should view them from the perspective of ethics and policy. Here, we address the question of whether 'eugenics' can be defended and how proponents and critics of enhancement should engage with each other.

Keywords: CRISPR; Embryo selection; Enhancement; Ethics; Eugenics; Gene editing; Human enhancement.

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Conflict of interest statement

None.

References

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