by Mahmoud Mourad and Lin Noueihed, Scientific American, December 6, 2016
Egypt has uncovered a network accused of illicit international trafficking in human organs, arresting 45 people and recovering millions of dollars . . . . Among those held were doctors, nurses, middlemen and organ-buyers, involved in what the ministry described as the largest organ-trafficking network exposed in Egypt to date. (http://tinyurl.com/jeajjxm)
by Ruth Evans, BBC, January 25, 2017
Sadi Ahmed was held hostage for three months by an organ trafficking gang. In October last year, he was one of 24 people rescued by police in Rawalpindi, Pakistan. They had been imprisoned in a building in an affluent suburb, awaiting the forced removal of their kidneys. (http://tinyurl.com/l5l8ttu)
by Katherine Gregory, Australian Broadcasting Co, January 5, 2017
Syrian refugees desperate for money to get passage to Europe are selling their organs on the black market and the profits are lining the pockets of organised crime and terrorist networks, two experts say. (http://tinyurl.com/lsv2aqp)
There has been a marked increase in news coverage on the international black market for human organs, alongside heightened attention from recent documentaries and summits that have covered the issue. In all cases, whether it involves the poor in India, prisoners in China, victims of kidnapping, or refugees, the poor and vulnerable are exploited for the benefit of the wealthy who need organs and the traders who make substantial profits.
by Sheila Kaplan, STAT News, December 7, 2016
It took nearly three years for Congress to pass the 21st Century Cures Act. . . . The legislation, designed to accelerate the introduction of new medical treatments by speeding up some FDA approval processes and boosting federal funding, passed the Senate Wednesday [December 7th] by a 94 to 5. (http://tinyurl.com/m4rkfsr)
The 21st Century Cures Act is a 1,000-page document that is intended to improve medical research. Among other things, the act extends the U.S. Federal Drug Administration’s responsibilities over medical devices and implementing patient-specific drug development. It provides research money for several government initiatives including the BRAIN Initiative and the Cancer “Moonshot” Initiative. It will also call for greater transparency for conflicts of interest and research reproducibility. Included in the act is $1 billion to combat the opioid epidemic. Critics of the act argue that it will favor pharmaceutical companies profiting from streamlined regulations.
by Dennis Thompson, UPI, December 20, 2016
Drug overdose deaths continue to surge in the United States, with most fatalities linked to the illicit use of prescription painkillers, new government statistics reveal. Drug overdose deaths increased 23 percent between 2010 and 2014, with more than 47,000 Americans dying in 2014, the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) data released Tuesday shows. But updated numbers from the CDC also show that more than 52,000 people died from a drug overdose in 2015, and just over 33,000 of those deaths (63 percent) involved a prescription or illicit opioid. (http://tinyurl.com/mn2oqvf)
2015 saw substantial increases in the number of deaths due to drug overdose. These numbers plus the increase in deaths due to heart disease have led to an overall drop in U.S. life expectancy. The media also reported on an odd consequence of the number of overdose deaths: the number of donor organs has increased. CBHD hosted a lecture on opioids and the ethics of pain management last June. Video is available at https://cbhd.org/content/opioids-and-ethics-pain-management-and-addiction or directly through the Center’s YouTube Channel (youtube.com/bioethicscenter).
by Jill Neimakr, NPR, January 1, 2017
But for all the accolades, the method also has scientists concerned that the fatally flawed mitochondria can resurface to threaten a child's health. Earlier this month, a study published in Nature . . . suggested that in roughly 15 percent of cases, the mitochondrial replacement could fail and allow fatal defects to return, or even increase a child's vulnerability to new ailments. (http://tinyurl.com/h3hqsyb)
Great Britain formally allowed the creation of “three-parent” embryos as technique for women who suffer from mitochondrial disease and do not want to pass it on to their children. A report in Nature showed that there is likely a communication problem between the DNA from two different sources. Following on the September announcement of the couple who went to Mexico to have this technique done (http://tinyurl.com/jdrqcmk), another news story reported the first use of this technique for infertility in the Ukraine (http://tinyurl.com/kknhgb4). It remains unknown whether babies born as a result of this procedure will have any lasting effects given the experimental nature of this procedure. CBHD hosted a consultation on the theology and ethics of synthetic gametes in 2012 exploring the development of this technology. Video is available at https://cbhd.org/event/ethics-theology-synthetic-gametes or the Center’s YouTube Channel.
by Amy Norton, UPI, January 26, 2017
It might sound like science fiction, but researchers have successfully used human stem cells to create embryos that are part-human, part-pig. Scientists said the long-range goal is to better understand and treat an array of human diseases. The researchers hope to ultimately cultivate human tissue that can be given to patients awaiting transplants. (http://tinyurl.com/kbm3pp5)
Scientists were able to create a hybrid embryo using human induced pluripotent stem cells and genetically-modified pig embryos. The pig embryos were injected with human stem cells and then placed within a sow. After gestating for several weeks, tests on the embryos showed that some of the human stem cells were beginning to form the precursors to tissues; all embryos were destroyed. While the aim is to eventually harvest human organs from pigs, a cautionary report from Science says that this is still a long way off (http://tinyurl.com/m6sw3tn). The creation of human-animal chimeras raises several ethical concerns including whether the eventual animal will have human characteristics or human cognition.
by Emily Woodruff, STAT News, January 28, 2017
When Catherine Fonseca volunteered as an egg donor, the intake form asked for her SAT scores. It did not ask if she understood the long-term health implications of stimulating her ovaries to produce a bumper crop of eggs to be extracted and turned over to an infertile couple. (http://tinyurl.com/le6zy8b)
Even though there have been many anecdotal reports and smaller studies of the potentially fatal side-effects of egg donation, this has been one area that has had very little oversight. Egg donors are not legally protected, and the side effects are not well-studied. Even after the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention started collecting more data about donors, there are still no studies on long-term risks. Furthermore, many people turn a blind eye to the eugenic practices of selecting (and paying for) desirable egg donors.
by Joseph Bennington-Castro, NBC News, February 1, 2017
Now, the world is on the brink of another revolution thanks to an emerging technology called in vitro gametogenesis, or IVG, which would allow doctors to develop eggs and sperm from a surprising source: skin cells. These reproductive cells could then be used to create fertilized embryos to be implanted into a woman’s uterus (or, someday, an artificial womb). The potential impact of IVG on reproduction—and society at large—is staggering. Infertility may become a thing of the past. Same-sex couples could have children that are biologically related to both parents. And the world may eventually see children born with a single genetic parent or more than two genetic parents. (http://tinyurl.com/l8joqdx)
The production of oocytes from induced pluripotent stem cells created such a stir in the media, that it is included here even though it was only done in mouse studies. There are several ethical concerns with the production of gametes the lab, or gametogenesis, which echo many of the concerns ethicists have about cloning. However, also of concern is the way the media over-hyped a mouse study. In reality, particularly with reproduction, mouse models do not always translate to humans. CBHD hosted a 2012 lecture that explored the theological and ethical aspects of this issue. Video is available at https://cbhd.org/content/theological-ethical-points-creating-gametes or the Center’s YouTube Channel.
by Sara Reardon, Scientific American, February 14, 2017
Scientists should be permitted to modify human embryos destined for implantation in the womb to eliminate devastating genetic diseases such as sickle-cell anaemia or cystic fibrosis—once gene-editing techniques advance sufficiently for use in people and proper restrictions are in place. (http://tinyurl.com/zk4aq54)
by Ben Hirschler, Reuters, January 25, 2017
Two babies rescued from previously incurable leukemia after receiving infusions of gene-edited immune cells are doing well at home more than a year after initial treatment, scientists said on [January 25th]. (http://tinyurl.com/kamd67y)
After the 2015 National Academies summit, experts concluded that scientists should be permitted to modify human embryos for research purposes. Additionally, they suggested eventually using the technique prior to in vitro fertilization to eliminate certain diseases.
In another study, two babies with leukemia were given donor T-cells (a type of immune cell) that were genetically modified to more effectively target cancer cells. One year after receiving the donor cells, both babies are doing well, although one required a subsequent bone marrow transplant after developing graft versus host disease.
by Stephen Overly, The Washington Post, February 23, 2017
How many people could self-driving cars kill before we would no longer tolerate them? This once-hypothetical question is now taking on greater urgency, particularly among policymakers in Washington. The promise of autonomous vehicles is that they will make our roads safer and more efficient, but no technology is without its shortcomings and unintended consequences—in this instance, potentially fatal consequences. (http://tinyurl.com/meu9pbw)
Self-driving cars are going to continue to be a point of debate among ethicists, who are concerned over what the self-driving car will do in situations where a person may become injured or die. Will the car preserve the driver at the expense of the pedestrian? Will the car choose the least number of casualties? Furthermore, how will we know when the cars are safe enough to use on the road?
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