Why we must revisit the thorny issue of designing perfect babies

Since James Watson and Francis Crick first described the structure of the DNA double helix, scientists have debated the potential for creating genetically modified babies. In 2018, a Chinese scientist named He Jiankui

announced he had actually done it:

He used a gene editing tool called Crispr to edit the embryos of twin girls in hopes of making them resistant to HIV (human immunodeficiency virus).

China’s laws governing reproductive medicine and gene editing were ill-defined at the time. But outrage among scientists and the public

led to Dr He being sentenced to prison for three years

on charges of “illegal medical practice”, under a broad statute, and denounced as pursuing “personal fame and profit”.