Gene therapy can trigger the immune response in the patient, that could be harmful to them. Retroviruses has raised skepticism about their safety. Deactivated viruses are really deactivated?
B.
Viral vectors may cause toxicity, infection, inflammation, etc.
C.
Gene therapy may cause off-target effects — there is a risk that the new gene will insert itself into the path of another gene, disrupting its activity, or cause insertional mutagenesis.
D.
Gene therapy may cause chronic granulomatous disease and cancer.
【多选题】Ethical issues and concerns with gene therapy are:
A.
How can "good" and "bad" uses of gene therapy be distinguished? What actually happens when things go wrong? Who decides which traits are normal & which constitute a disability or disorder (deciding proper indications)?
B.
Do we have enough knowledge to make the right decisions? Are we able to control gene therapy? Are there situations, when gene therapy is ethically more acceptable? What are the costs for this type of therapy and who is paying for it?Will the high costs of gene therapy make it available only to the wealthy?
C.
Could the widespread use of gene therapy make society less accepting of people who are different? What is the socioeconomic impact of gene therapy in our society?
D.
Should people be allowed to use gene therapy to enhance basic human traits such as height, intelligence (IQ), or athletic ability (so called genetic enhancement)? What is the potential impact of germline gene transfer on future generations?
【多选题】Which of the following statements on gene therapy are correct?
A.
Two decades after the initial gene therapy trials and more than 2,000 approved clinical trials worldwide we not only have gained much new information and knowledge regarding gene therapy in general, but also learned to understand the concern that has persisted in society.
B.
Nevertheless, our knowledge continues to grow and during the course of time more safety data has become available that helps us to develop better gene therapy approaches. Also, with the increased understanding of molecular medicine, we have been able to develop more specific and efficient gene transfer vectors which are now producing clinical results.
C.
Despite the setbacks gene therapy has faced, success stories have increasingly emerged. Without doubt, the ethical aspects regarding gene therapy need to be addressed the same way as the question about their efficacy and safety.
D.
We need to acknowledge the fear of some patients in respect to gene therapy. Ultimately it is the patient who decides, whether she/he wants to be treated with gene therapy.