A CRISPR New World: Attitudes in the Public toward Innovations in Human Genetic Modification.

ABSTRACT: The potential to genetically modify human germlines has reached a critical tipping point with recent applications of CRISPR-Cas9. Even as researchers, clinicians, and ethicists weigh the scientific and ethical repercussions of these advances, we know virtually nothing about public attitudes on the topic. Understanding such attitudes will be critical to determining the degree of broad support there might be for any public policy or regulation developed for genetic modification research. To fill this gap, we gave an online survey to a large (2,493 subjects) and diverse sample of Americans. Respondents supported genetic modification research, although demographic variables influenced these attitudes-conservatives, women, African-Americans, and older respondents, while supportive, were more ca

SUBMITTER: Weisberg SM 

PROVIDER: S-EPMC5439143 | biostudies-literature | 2017

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature