The Food and Drug Administration is contemplating whether to approve trials for an in vitro fertilization technique involving DNA from three different people.
The new embryo would contain DNA from the intended mother and father, plus healthy DNA from a donor embryo, creating a three-parent baby.
The procedure could potentially protect against illnesses like muscular dystrophy and respiratory problems, as well as solve the problem of mothers passing on diseases of the mitochondria, also known as the "powerhouse" of the cell. Preventing diseases down generations is a great step, "as long as it proves to be safe," said medical ethicist Art Caplan in an interview with CNN's "New Day."
There are obviously some risks with this type of procedure, including, according to Caplan, a society resembling something out of GATTACA.
"Where we get into the sticky part is, what if you get past transplanting batteries and start to say, 'While we're at it, why don't we make you taller, stronger, faster or smarter?'" asked Caplan, the director of medical ethics at New York University's Langone Medical Center.
Susan Solomon, the director of the New York Stem Cell Foundation, says there are no changes to existing genes, and insists that that is not the direction that these trials will steer.
"What we're doing is, without at all changing the DNA of the mother, just allowing it to grow in an environment that isn't sick," she told CNN.
So far the FDA advisory panel has talked over the procedure, discussing what controls might be used in trials, how a developing embryo might be monitored during those tests and who should oversee the trials. After two days of hearings, they have yet to make a decision.
According to to Caplan, while the method may not aim to create a genetically modified baby, it opens up the possibility.
"The big issue over the next five to 10 years is going to become how far do we go in pursuit of the perfect baby," Caplan said. "Do I think we're going down that road? Yes. Does it creep me out? Yes. Are you going to be able to draw a clear line? I don't think so."
