Summary: Like Spider-Man in the movies, there is a debate about whether genetic manipulation can be used to enhance the abilities of living things in the real world. While some genetic modifications are already practical, such as insulin production and GMO foods, there are still scientific and ethical limitations to inserting specific genes into the complex human body to create new abilities.

Introduction

Spider-Man is a movie superhero that still thrills me as he weaves his web and flies like Tarzan through the skyscrapers of New York City. In The Amazing Spider-Man, Peter Parker is bitten by a genetically engineered spider that gives him the ability to climb walls, have quicker reflexes, and greatly increased muscle strength. He uses these abilities to develop a “web-shooter,” a device that rips out spider webs, allowing him to move freely through a forest of buildings. Another genetically modified character in the film is Dr. Curtis Connors. Dr. Connors injects himself with a lizard-derived injection to regenerate one of his amputated arms, but ends up becoming a lizard himself. The movie is based on the possibility of using genetic manipulation to give one creature the characteristics of another.
Genetic modification and biotechnology may remain the stuff of movies and novels, but their technological potential is so great that they are the second most invested in of the top six emerging technologies, after IT. If the movies become reality, we may be able to insert genes from the regenerative zebrafish into our brain cells to treat Alzheimer’s disease, or even physically transform ourselves into whale humans. In the centenarian era, humanity is now moving beyond just life-saving technologies to focus on disease prevention and improving quality of life. In this article, we’ll take a look at the realistic possibilities of genetic manipulation in movies and give our opinions, both positive and negative, on the subject.

Genetic modification is possible

Genetic modification is certainly possible, and it’s already being used in various fields. However, there are limitations to creating specific traits in large, complex organisms like humans, and we don’t fully understand the metabolism of the human body. Nevertheless, there are three main examples of genetic engineering in action.
The first is insulin supplements given to diabetics. Insulin is a protein, which is difficult to chemically produce in large quantities. So, scientists inserted insulin-producing genes into bacteria or mini-pigs that can produce human insulin, which allows them to mass-produce insulin. Bacteria are often used for genetic manipulation because of their relatively simple structure, and by inserting the human insulin-producing gene via a plasmid (a loop of DNA that exists separately from the chromosomes in the cell), there is a certain probability that the bacteria will take up the gene and produce insulin. This is an example of modifying the metabolism of an organism.
The second example is GMO foods, which are usually developed to combine the best features of several plants to create a better plant than the original. A classic example is the ‘fish tomato’. This tomato received genes from deep-sea fish, specifically the “cold tolerance gene” from flounder, which allows it to thrive in low temperatures. This is an example of genetic engineering, which is the process of changing the characteristics of an organism by introducing features from another organism.
The third example is GloFish, in which GFP (Green Fluorescent Protein), derived from jellyfish, was injected into fish embryos to create fluorescent fish that glow brightly in ultraviolet or white light. Initially, only green glowing fish existed, but now jellyfish and coral genes are being used to create fluorescent fish of various colors. These examples of genetic manipulation suggest that trait modifications such as fluorescent humans or cold-resistant humans are theoretically possible. As you can see from these three examples, genetic modification is not impossible.

Genetic manipulation is not possible

However, it is still argued that it is impossible to freely manipulate human genes. In addition to the ethical issues of tampering with God’s domain, there is also the fact that we don’t understand enough about genes themselves. The Human Genome Project, which sequenced the entire human genome, was completed in 2003, but it’s only a chemical sequence: what proteins a particular gene encodes, how they interact, etc. are still being studied. For example, to create a fluorescent human and ensure that the fluorescent proteins are only produced in the skin, we need to be able to tightly control cell differentiation and development. Phenotypic expression involves both differentiation and pattern formation. For fluorescent DNA to be expressed in skin cells and repressed in other cells, a specific protein is required, and another gene that produces that protein must be present. Thus, genetic manipulation is not a simple matter of inserting DNA, but involves very complex theoretical work.
Even if all the relevant genes are identified and manipulated at the embryonic stage, problems can arise. With current technology, injecting genes into an embryo can cause the cell to reject them or even kill the cell itself. Even if a gene is inserted into a cell, it’s not clear that the DNA will be stable in the cell and be expressed as a protein.
It’s also unlikely that an organism could acquire the traits of multiple species at once, as Spider-Man does in the movie. For example, in order to develop fine hairs for wall-climbing, fast reflexes, and powerful muscles, multiple genes would need to be manipulated simultaneously, which would likely result in a significantly different human body shape. Enhanced reflexes would require changes in neural structure, which may be unrelated to spider genes. After all, human genes have evolved to their optimal state over a long period of time, and it would be difficult to make such large-scale changes.

Conclusion

Beings like Spider-Man and lizardmen from the movies are unlikely to exist in the real world. There are very few traits that humans and spiders share genetically, and any genetic change that would alter the fundamentals of an organism would require the organism to adapt and evolve. Gene expression isn’t just about making proteins, it’s about many different factors working together. Therefore, there are many scientific challenges that need to be solved before a ‘Genetically Modified Human’ can be created.
Even if the technology does advance to create a superhero-like being, it will face ethical issues. If these powers are used to oppress the weak, it may be necessary to genetically modify the entire human race to be fair, but not everyone will want to do so.
Genetic manipulation would be less ethically controversial and less risky if it were done within our basic genes. Manipulation within the base genes means manipulation to restore functions lost due to genetic modification. For example, allowing the body to make its own insulin instead of being made outside the body is beneficial to health, and treating cystic fibrosis caused by genetic modification is medical genetic modification. As movies emphasize entertainment over scientific accuracy, it is our responsibility as biomedical scientists to recognize real-world problems and work toward genetic modifications that benefit society.