Gene drive technologies: Navigating the ethical landscape
Nienke De Graeff
What was your PhD about?
In my PhD, I identified and evaluated the ethical challenges of gene drive technologies. Gene drives promote the progressive spread of a genetic element across a population of non-human organisms. Gene drives could be used to address intractable problems such as vector-borne diseases like malaria, yet their development and governance raise a range of ethical questions and concerns that warrant proactive ethical evaluation.
What is your fondest memory of your time at RMU?
It is very hard to pick one moment! Among my favorite moments are the film screenings and discussions that Karin Jongsma, Emy Kool and I organized in our ‘Cine Qua Non – Science Meets Fiction’ film club. I fondly remember the interesting discussion that emerged after watching the film Gattaca.
What are you going to do next?
I will continue working on the ethics of biotechnology as an assistant professor at the department of Ethics and Law at Leiden University Medical Center.