How to: Fix Yourself

What if I told you your DNA can be edited?

Well, although it may sound like scientific fiction, the tools already exist. It is called CRISPR, which is a "molecular scissor" that can find a wrong version of a gene, cut it out, and sometimes paste in a corrected version. The researchers who developed it won the Nobel Prize in 2020.

In 2023, regulators approved a CRISPR treatment for sickle cell disease, aiming to fix an inherited illness at its genetic root instead of just managing symptoms. Scientists are now targeting cancers and other conditions once thought untreatable. Not only for human beings, but it can be used in farms as well. In farms, engineered crops can resist drought and pests. However, such technology can be misused. In 2018, a scientist edited the genes of human embryos that became actual babies. This raised a significant question, which still cannot be clearly answered to this day: If we can choose a child's traits, who decides what counts as a "fix" and what is just a preference?

Genetic engineering is not a miracle nor a monster. It's a tool, and its value depends on how it is used. While the advancement of technology is getting faster and quicker, it leaves a big question to all of us: not whether we can edit life, but whether we should.