Advances in biotechnology hold the promise of preventing disease, enhancing physical and intellectual capabilities, and even creating a new human race through genetic manipulation. However, the ethical and social issues that these technologies bring with them require deep thought and social consensus.
Today, humanity is accomplishing things that are only imagined in science fiction. We have made leaps and bounds in science and technology through countless research efforts, creating fast and convenient transportation, storing all the information in the world on a single computer, and finding cures for diseases that were once unknown. These technologies have allowed us to enjoy a much better quality of life than our ancestors did, and they have also allowed us to push the limits of humanity. Research in the field of biotechnology, in particular, gives us a glimpse of the possibility of ending the era of Homo sapiens and creating a new human race. How will biotechnology cause the extinction of Homo sapiens?
Advances in biotechnology are not just about genetic manipulation. We’ve already analyzed and decoded the entire human genome through the Human Genome Project, which has brought us to the point where we no longer have to suffer from unknown diseases. We have now reached the point where we can precisely edit specific genes using CRISPR-Cas9, a gene-editing technology. With this technology, we can not only prevent or treat genetic diseases, but also improve our physical and intellectual abilities. For example, we can proactively remove genes that cause deadly diseases such as heart disease or cancer, increasing our chances of living a healthy life.
Currently, the field of biotechnology is heavily involved in the study of genes. Genes are being analyzed, their functions are being discovered, and they’re being recombined. The biotechnologies that have resulted from these studies have brought things that we thought were only in our imagination into the realm of the real world. For example, gene transplants can be used to create traits from one organism to appear in another. In fact, scientists have successfully taken the gene for green fluorescence from a fluorescent jellyfish and placed it in the embryo of a white rabbit to create a fluorescent rabbit. It’s like taking a cell phone and adding the ability to play music, access the internet, and more to create a smartphone.
The possibilities for gene transfer are endless. For example, bacteria that synthesize insulin, a treatment for diabetes, can be given genes to mass-produce insulin. Bacteria divide at a very high rate, so it’s easy to get a large amount of insulin that’s not comparable to extracting it from livestock. Gene transplants are also used to create biofuels and improve crops. In this way, we can manipulate the genes of existing organisms to our liking.
Scientists aren’t stopping there, though, and are already trying to manipulate the genes of extinct organisms. Harvard professor George Church’s team is currently working on creating an elephant with mammoth traits called a “mammapant” by combining elephant genes with mammoth genes, and they’re currently working on the embryonic stage, which is the stage of creating an actual organism.
In addition to combining genes from living organisms, researchers are also actively working on synthesizing human DNA to create artificial life. Dr. Craig Venter’s team at the Craig Venter Institute (JCVI) in the United States has been working on artificially synthesizing DNA and putting it into bacteria to create artificial life. If combining genes is like putting together what you want from different sets of Lego blocks on the market to create a building, creating artificial life is like creating your own Lego blocks in the shape you want and building with them.
In this context, advances in biotechnology are more than just scientific achievements; they also present us with new challenges that require us to consider ethical and social issues. For example, if it becomes possible to improve the physical and intellectual capabilities of humanity through genetic modification, it will be necessary to reach a social consensus on whether these technologies can be applied equitably to everyone, or whether only certain classes will benefit from them. Another important issue will be how to address ecological disruptions and new forms of ethical dilemmas that may arise from the overuse of biotechnology.
These advances in biotechnology have allowed humans to manipulate the genes of animals, plants, and bacteria. It is more complicated, but not impossible, to manipulate human genes, so why not use biotechnologies such as genetic modification to improve the current human race physically or intellectually? For example, if we wanted to increase the lifespan of humans, we could obtain genes related to longevity from long-lived animals such as turtles, or synthesize them in the laboratory and insert them into human genes. We could also analyze human genes to find genes that cause diseases and replace them with normal genes.
If human genetic manipulation continues to occur, there will come a point when the genetic gap between Homo sapiens and other species becomes insurmountable and reproduction through sexual reproduction becomes impossible, meaning that a new species will emerge that is different from Homo sapiens. Homo sapiens will then self-extinction due to the biotechnology they have developed, and the new species will dominate the planet.
Of course, this is not something that can happen right now. Not only do we not have the technology to manipulate human genes at will, but we also need to address the ethical issues that come with experimenting on humans. However, these are issues that can be resolved over time. Humanity will continue to develop technology, and one day we will be able to easily recombine human genes, and there will be some form of social consensus on the ethical issues. Few people will object to the idea of genetically modifying humans to make them stronger, smarter, and more intelligent. So, wouldn’t that solve the ethical issues in some way and move us towards creating a better humanity?
Advances in biotechnology have made it possible for humans to manipulate the genes of living beings that currently exist or have existed in the past, and have opened up the possibility of creating a new human race by genetically modifying humans. From this perspective, the future of the new human race is in our hands. We can decide what physical characteristics it will have, what level of intellectual capacity it will have, and how it will reproduce. So before we start tinkering with human genes, shouldn’t we think deeply about what kind of new humanity we want, and whether it will be able to thrive on our planet?
