Is Malaysia Ready for Human Gene Editing: A Regulatory, Biosafety and Biosecurity Perspective

Gene editing platforms have revolutionized the field of genetics with a direct impact on the public health system. Although there are apparent benefits, it is often accompanied by public debates over its uncertainties and risks. In the Malaysian context, modern biotechnology has raised questions about how to best govern gene editing in regulations, biosafety, and biosecurity. Even though standards and guidelines on stem cell and cell-based therapies have been developed, there are no appropriate legal frameworks available for gene editing yet. Nevertheless, biosafety regulations were established to balance promoting biotechnology and protecting against their potential environmental and human health risks. There is also a need to address the potential of genetically modified organisms (GMOs) as bioweapons. Numerous frameworks from several international organizations may provide valuable input in formulating documents on gene editing. By establishing comprehensive guidelines, legal policies, and standards to tackle the challenges and risks associated with gene editing, Malaysia can successfully apply this modern technology in this country.

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Surpassing our genes: The subversive post-human message of 'Gattaca'

Mètode Revista de difusió de la investigació ◽

10.7203/metode.12.20673 ◽

2021 ◽

Author(s):

Emily Klein ◽

Leah Ceccarelli

Keyword(s):

Genetic Engineering ◽

Gene Editing ◽

Human Gene ◽

Genetic Discrimination ◽

The Public ◽

Public Debates ◽

Human Individual

The movie Gattaca is often referenced in public debates about the societal dangers of human gene editing. In the public imaginary, its message is clear: the dystopian future it portrays stands as a warning against the societal acceptance of genetic perfectionism and genetic discrimination. This article argues that such a reading misses a deeper message of this cinematic text. Rather than offer a bioethics lesson against the use of genetics to make better human babies, in our opinion, the film actually argues that such genetic tampering is unlikely to succeed, but that the genetic engineering of a superior post-human individual is both possible and desirable.

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Therapeutic gene editing is here, can regulations keep up?

10.38105/spr.czm9c2w8ig ◽

2020 ◽

Vol 1 ◽

pp. 64-75

Author(s):

Soumya Kannan ◽

Devora Najjar

Keyword(s):

Research And Development ◽

Genome Editing ◽

Gene Editing ◽

Therapeutic Gene ◽

Comprehensive Review ◽

The Public ◽

Legal Frameworks ◽

Genome Modifications ◽

Cancer Immunotherapies ◽

Regulatory Landscape

Genome editing and the technologies that enable it have sparked public discussions as investments in research and development continue to soar. Available gene editing modalities are enabling far-reaching applications beyond heritable genome modifications, ranging from novel therapeutics and cancer immunotherapies to engineered crops and livestock. However, many challenges, both practical and ethical, still exist before genome editing technologies can be implemented. Existing legal frameworks, both national and international, are racing to keep pace with the development of gene editing technologies. Updating regulations on gene editing can help provide a framework under which scientists and the public operate. Shaping and implementing proper regulations will require engagement from all impacted stakeholders. Here, we present a comprehensive review of the current scientific and regulatory landscape of this field of gene editing in order to stimulate necessary conversations regarding future regulations in the broader community

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Summary and conclusions

10.1093/oso/9780198818014.003.0016 ◽

2018 ◽

Author(s):

Thomas F. Babor ◽

Jonathan Caulkins ◽

Benedikt Fischer ◽

David Foxcroft ◽

Keith Humphreys ◽

...

Keyword(s):

International Organizations ◽

Drug Policy ◽

Drug Users ◽

Illicit Drug ◽

Supply And Demand ◽

Unintended Consequences ◽

Public Health Approach ◽

Drug Supply ◽

The Public ◽

Balanced Approach

Among the 47 options reviewed in this book, most show some evidence of effectiveness in at least one country, but the evidence is less than definitive for many others, either because the interventions are ineffective, or the research is inadequate. Unfortunately, policies that have shown little or no evidence of effectiveness continue to be the preferred options of many countries and international organizations. The evidence reviewed in this book supports two overarching conclusions. First, an integrated and balanced approach to evidence-informed drug policy is more likely to benefit the public good than uncoordinated efforts to reduce drug supply and demand. Second, by shifting the emphasis toward a public health approach, it may be possible to reduce the extent of illicit drug use, prevent the escalation of new epidemics, and avoid the unintended consequences arising from the marginalization of drug users through severe criminal penalties.

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Trusting the Corona-Warn-App? Contemplations on trust and trustworthiness at the intersection of technology, politics and public debate

European Journal of Communication ◽

10.1177/02673231211028377 ◽

2021 ◽

pp. 026732312110283

Author(s):

Judith Simon ◽

Gernot Rieder

Keyword(s):

Technology Development ◽

Public Debate ◽

Lessons Learned ◽

Initial Development ◽

The Public ◽

Public Debates ◽

Moral Duties ◽

Moral Demands

Ever since the outbreak of the COVID-19 pandemic, questions of whom or what to trust have become paramount. This article examines the public debates surrounding the initial development of the German Corona-Warn-App in 2020 as a case study to analyse such questions at the intersection of trust and trustworthiness in technology development, design and oversight. Providing some insights into the nature and dynamics of trust and trustworthiness, we argue that (a) trust is only desirable and justified if placed well, that is, if directed at those being trustworthy; that (b) trust and trustworthiness come in degrees and have both epistemic and moral components; and that (c) such a normatively demanding understanding of trust excludes technologies as proper objects of trust and requires that trust is directed at socio-technical assemblages consisting of both humans and artefacts. We conclude with some lessons learned from our case study, highlighting the epistemic and moral demands for trustworthy technology development as well as for public debates about such technologies, which ultimately requires attributing epistemic and moral duties to all actors involved.

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Public perceptions of who counts as a scientist for controversial science

Public Understanding of Science ◽

10.1177/0963662519856768 ◽

2019 ◽

Vol 28 (7) ◽

pp. 797-811 ◽

Cited By ~ 4

Author(s):

Brianne Suldovsky ◽

Asheley Landrum ◽

Natalie Jomini Stroud

Keyword(s):

Climate Change ◽

Media Coverage ◽

Political Ideology ◽

Genetically Modified Organisms ◽

The United States ◽

Public Perceptions ◽

The Public ◽

The Us ◽

Science Media

In an era where expertise is increasingly critiqued, this study draws from the research on expertise and scientist stereotyping to explore who the public considers to be a scientist in the context of media coverage about climate change and genetically modified organisms. Using survey data from the United States, we find that political ideology and science knowledge affect who the US public believes is a scientist in these domains. Our results suggest important differences in the role of science media attention and science media selection in the publics “scientist” labeling. In addition, we replicate previous work and find that compared to other people who work in science, those with PhDs in Biology and Chemistry are most commonly seen as scientists.

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Poor mental health among Taiwanese people experiencing the public debates on and referendums for same-sex marriage: A Facebook online survey

Journal of the Formosan Medical Association ◽

10.1016/j.jfma.2020.10.027 ◽

2020 ◽

Author(s):

Mu-Hong Chen ◽

Nai-Ying Ko ◽

Yu-Te Huang ◽

Huei-Fan Hu ◽

Wei-Hsin Lu ◽

...

Keyword(s):

Mental Health ◽

Online Survey ◽

Poor Mental Health ◽

Same Sex ◽

Same Sex Marriage ◽

The Public ◽

Public Debates ◽

Taiwanese People

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A Catholic Inclusive Approach to Homosexuality in Nigeria

Theology Today ◽

10.1177/0040573617731710 ◽

2018 ◽

Vol 74 (4) ◽

pp. 396-408

Author(s):

Daniel Ude Asue

Keyword(s):

Catholic Church ◽

Social Teaching ◽

Same Sex ◽

Same Sex Marriage ◽

The Public ◽

Public Debates ◽

Inclusive Approach ◽

Inclusive Society ◽

The Church ◽

The Catholic Church

This essay discusses Same-Sex Marriage Prohibition Bill in Nigeria, with a focus on the contribution of the Nigerian Catholic Church to the law. Though the Catholic Church in Nigeria did not actively contribute towards the public debates about homosexuality that resulted into the Same-Sex Marriage Prohibition Bill it nevertheless welcomed the bill. However, the official teachings of the Catholic Church and elucidations from the Catholic Bishops Conference of Nigeria could potentially contribute to creating an inclusive society. In what way can we potentially utilize the principles of Catholic Social Teaching to make room for an inclusion of homosexual persons in the life of the church and in society?

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Jainism in Danger? Temple entry and the rhetoric of religion and reform in post-colonial India

Modern Asian Studies ◽

10.1017/s0026749x20000402 ◽

2020 ◽

pp. 1-37

Author(s):

MANISHA SETHI

Keyword(s):

Twentieth Century ◽

The State ◽

The Other ◽

Post Colonial ◽

Colonial India ◽

The Public ◽

Public Debates ◽

Definition Of ◽

Open The Doors ◽

The Relationship

Abstract A bitter debate broke out in the Digambar Jain community in the middle of the twentieth century following the passage of the Bombay Harijan Temple Entry Act in 1947, which continued until well after the promulgation of the Untouchability (Offences) Act 1955. These laws included Jains in the definition of ‘Hindu’, and thus threw open the doors of Jain temples to formerly Untouchable castes. In the eyes of its Jain opponents, this was a frontal and terrible assault on the integrity and sanctity of the Jain dharma. Those who called themselves reformists, on the other hand, insisted on the closeness between Jainism and Hinduism. Temple entry laws and the public debates over caste became occasions for the Jains not only to examine their distance—or closeness—to Hinduism, but also the relationship between their community and the state, which came to be imagined as predominantly Hindu. This article, by focusing on the Jains and this forgotten episode, hopes to illuminate the civilizational categories underlying state practices and the fraught relationship between nationalism and minorities.

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