Genetic technologies
1
—the ability to manipulate and trans-
form the properties of cells, seeds, microbes, insects, plants,
animals and even humans—are pushing the frontiers of
science and oers us new hope for disease control and cure.
is eld has come a long way since Gregor Mendel, the
father of genetics, rst postulated the rule of heredity in the
1850s. Genetic technologies are changing the way we produce
food, improving crop yield and preventing catastrophic losses
from droughts, oods and pests. ey also are oering new
solutions for ghting cancer and many hereditary diseases,
improving quality of life and life expectancy. In addition,
genetic technologies are increasingly used in criminal justice
systems to exonerate the innocent and convict the guilty. Such
technologies, moreover, have given rise to genetic genealogy,
allowing people to nd their ethnic roots.
While the upsides of genetic technologies are promising,
we also need to consider their downside risks. Access to gene
therapies to combat diseases, for example, may be limited to
those who can aord them, potentially increasing inequality
in health outcomes within and across countries. Genomic
research that serves to identify pre-existing conditions can
potentially deprive patients from health insurance and medical
care. Genetic technologies may exacerbate productivity gaps
in agriculture, disadvantaging small farmers, especially in
developing countries, who cannot access or aord genet-
ically modied seeds. Moreover, there can be unintended
health consequences of genetically modied crop produc-
tion, including increased risks of contamination and loss
of biodiversity.
e downside risks can be even uglier. Genetic
modications can potentially lead to the production of
“designer babies” and super-humans and fundamentally alter
the human species. Genomic research can be weaponized
to target and harm specic population groups. e legal,
ethical and moral boundaries of using genetic technologies
are increasingly unclear, creating opportunities for their
misuse and abuse. Weighing potential benets against risks
thus remains an urgent challenge. is Frontier Technology
Quarterly discusses the potential of genetic technologies for
improving health and agricultural productivity, two important
goals of the 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development, the
1 e term broadly encompasses both genetics—the study of genes and
their role passing traits or conditions from one generation to another, and
genomics—the study of all of a person’s genes (the genome), including
interactions of those genes with each other and with the person’s
environment. Genomics includes the scientic study of complex diseases
such as heart disease, asthma, diabetes, and cancer because these diseases
are typically caused more by a combination of genetic and environmental
factors than by individual genes. Genomics is oering new possibilities
for therapies and treatments for some complex diseases, as well as new
diagnostic methods (source: www.genome.gov).
risks posed by these technologies for increasing inequities in
health outcomes and their potential misuse and abuse.
I. The good
Genetic technologies are oering new solutions for disease
control, prevention and cure. ey are now being used to
diagnose and treat complex diseases such as heart disease,
asthma, diabetes and cancer. Genetic technologies may also
soon allow us to eradicate malaria, a major health menace in
many developing countries.
Eradicating malaria
Malaria is one of the most severe public health epidemics
in sub-Saharan Africa and large swaths of Asia and Latin
America (Figure 1). It is a leading cause of death, especially
in Africa, where a quarter of the population remains at risk
of contracting the disease. According to the World Health
Organization (WHO), one child dies from malaria every
two minutes. In 2017, there were an estimated 219 million
malaria cases worldwide and 435,000 deaths.
2
e social
2 https://www.who.int/news-room/fact-sheets/detail/malaria
World Economic and Social Survey 2018: Frontier Technology for
Sustainable Developmenta agship publication of the United
Nations Department of Economic and Social Aairs (DESA)
generated considerable interest in new technologies and
their development impacts. Inspired by this strong interest,
the Economic Analysis and Policy Division has undertaken to
produce quarterly reviews on frontier technologies, delving
deeper into specic aspects of a new technology. The series
will identify challenges and raise many questionsand answer
a fewwhile motivating policy research in DESA and
beyond. This second edition of the series discusses genetic
technologies. The quarterly reviews will be shared and discussed
in development policy seminars and social media platforms to
enrich policy discourse on frontier technologies.
Economic Analysis and Policy Division w Department of Economic and Social Affairs
FRONTIER TECHNOLOGY QUARTERLY
Playing with genes: The good, the bad and the ugly
May
2019
Kristinn Helgason, Marcelo LaFleur, and Hamid Rashid, Economic
Analysis and Policy Division (EAPD) of UN DESA, authored this
issue of Frontier Technology Quarterly. Nazrul Islam, Alex Julca,
Hiroshi Kawamura, and Mariangela Parra-Lancourt provided
useful comments on the draft. Research support was provided by
Nicole Hunt and Linying He. Hamid Rashid, in his capacity as the
Chief of Development Research Branch in EAPD, supervised the
production. The views and opinions expressed herein are those
of the authors and do not necessarily reect those of the United
Nations Secretariat.