中国“基因编辑婴儿”打开潘多拉魔盒？

11月26日，中国科学家贺建奎宣布，一对名为露露和娜娜的基因编辑婴儿于11月在中国诞生，她们出生后即能“天然抵抗艾滋病”。这是世界首例免疫艾滋病的基因编辑婴儿，研究拟采用 CRISPR-Cas9 技术对胚胎进行编辑，使婴儿从植入母亲子宫之前就获得了抗击霍乱、天花或艾滋病的能力。

基因改造人类胚胎是否符合道德及伦理一直是医学界一个颇有争议的议题。贺建奎的研究传出后受到外界强烈质疑，122名中国科学家当天发表联合声明，对此表示坚决反对和强烈谴责。贺建奎隶属的南方科技大学表示，由于生物学院认为他的项目“严重违反学术道德和学术规范”，已在2月份对其实行停薪留职。

霍金在遗作《写给未来人类的备忘录》中，曾这样写道：富人未来能选择编辑自己和孩子的 DNA，变成拥有强大记忆力、抗病力、智力和更长寿命的“超人”。届时未改造人类将无法与之竞争。

本篇课程首发于2018年11月29日，选自 Daily Express

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Genetically modified babies in bombshell breakthrough claims scientist

① A Chinese scientist has claimed he helped make the world's first genetically modified human beings: twin girls whose DNA he said he altered.

② The news is likely to spark global outcry, as people question the moral and ethical questions concerning the bombshell experiment.

③ A team at the Southern University of Science and Technology, in Shenzhen, has been recruiting couples in an effort to create the first gene-edited babies.

④ The team planned to eliminate a gene called CCR5 to make the offspring resistant to HIV, smallpox and cholera.

⑤ They have been using a powerful gene editing tool, CRISPR-cas9, to create "genetically modified" human babies.

⑥ The explosive scientific breakthrough, if verified, would represent the first genetically engineered humans in the history of science.

⑦ However, experiments of this kind are also likely to prove controversial, with some claiming it could lead to a "slippery slope" to so-called "designer babies" and advanced eugenics.

▍话题相关表达

genetically modified /dʒəˌnetɪkəli ˈmɒdɪfaɪd/: adj. 转基因的；基因改造的

DNA: n. 脱氧核糖核酸

alter /ˈɒltə, ɑːltər/: vt. (通常指轻微地) 改动/修改

gene-edited: adj. 基因编辑的

(be) resistant to: 对……有抵抗力的；耐……的

HIV / human immunodeficiency virus: n. 人体免疫缺陷病毒；艾滋病病毒

smallpox /ˈsmɔːlpɒks, ˈsmɑːlpɑːks/: n. 天花

cholera /ˈkɒlərə, ˈkɑːlərə/: n. 霍乱

genetically engineered = genetically modified

designer baby: 设计婴儿

eugenics /juːˈdʒenɪks/: n. 优生学；人种改良学

▍一般生词好句

bombshell breakthrough: 爆炸性突破

bombshell /ˈbɒmʃel, ˈbɑːmʃel/: n. 突发事件，引起震惊的人/事；炸弹

claim /kleɪm/: vt. 声称

spark /spɑːk, spɑːrk/: vt. 引起；引发

outcry /ˈaʊtkraɪ/: n. 强烈抗议

recruit /rɪˈkruːt/: vt. 招募；征募

in an effort/attempt to do sth.: 为了……

eliminate /iˈlɪmɪneɪt/: vt. 消灭；淘汰

offspring /ˈɒfsprɪŋ, ˈɑːfsprɪŋ/: n. 后代；子女

explosive scientific breakthrough: 爆炸性科学突破

verify /ˈverɪfaɪ, ˈverəfaɪ/: vt. 证实；核实

represent /ˌreprɪˈzent/: vt. 标志着

slippery slope: 灾难性的急剧下滑；滑坡效应 (指坏情况或恶习一旦开始很可能变得愈加严重)

▍词汇拓展

1. bombshell /ˈbɒmʃel, ˈbɑːmʃel/: n. 突发事件，引起震惊的人/事；炸弹

His resignation is a political bombshell.

他的辞职是政治上的一个爆炸性新闻。

2. 表示“引起；导致”的词

原文：spark、lead to

补充：stir、cause、trigger off

▍知识拓展

1. 基因编辑

基因编辑技术能够让人类对特定 DNA 片段进行消除或者添加

Genome editing (also called gene editing) is a group of technologies that give scientists the ability to change an organism's DNA. These technologies allow genetic material to be added, removed, or altered at particular locations in the genome.

2. CRISPR-Cas9

CRISPR-Cas9 技术能够让基因编辑如同我们在电脑上剪切、复制和粘贴资料一样简单方便。

Several approaches to genome editing have been developed. A recent one is known as CRISPR-Cas9, which is short for clustered regularly interspaced short palindromic repeats and CRISPR-associated protein 9. The CRISPR-Cas9 system has generated a lot of excitement in the scientific community because it is faster, cheaper, more accurate, and more efficient than other existing genome editing methods.

3. 设计婴儿

设计婴儿是指为确保小孩具有某些长处或者避免某些缺陷，在出生以前就对他（她）的基因构成进行了选择的孩子，当前的基因编辑技术已让设计婴儿的诞生不再是神话。

优点：降低基因疾病和遗传疾病风险，更优质的基因决定更成功的未来，延长自然寿命。

缺点：某些基因的移除可能导致不可预知的风险；设计婴儿本身没有自主选择权，会导致人类个体所谓个性的缺失；只有富人能负担得起，社会阶级分化更加严重。

▍责任编辑

李焕、武志琳、章晓丹