The Emerging Field of Human Neural Organoids, Transplants, and Chimeras Science, Ethics, and Governance (2021) / Chapter Skim
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6 Findings of the Committee
6 Findings of the Committee
Pages 97-104
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From page 97... ...
Public engagement and communication VALUE OF THIS RESEARCH Finding I.1: Brain diseases -- neurological and psychiatric disorders -- are the leading cause of morbidity worldwide, resulting in mortality and untold suffering, as well as enormous financial burdens in health care costs and lost wages. There are few if any highly effective treatments for many of these disorders, which include traumatic injury; neurodegenerative diseases, such as Alzheimer's disease, Parkinson's disease, and amyotrophic lateral sclerosis; psychiatric diseases, such as schizophrenia and bipolar disorder; developmental disorders, such as autism spectrum disorder; and brain cancers.
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From page 98... ...
Organoids generated from patient-derived stem cells sometimes exhibit disease phenotypes that can be used to elucidate pathogenic mechanisms and test potential interventions. However, organoids are limited in size and complexity and lack important cell types, brain regions, and anatomically organized neural circuits thought to be required for complex human brain function, including consciousness.
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From page 99... ...
Issues of Ethical Concern Finding III.1: Because of the human suffering and mortality caused by brain disorders, limitations of current animal disease models, and the uniquely human quality of some brain diseases, there are strong moral arguments in favor of research using organoids, transplants, and chimeras derived from human cells as long as such research is balanced with other ethical considerations, such as ensuring animal welfare, appropriate use of human biological materials, and safety. Finding III.2: Some studies in which human neural cells have been integrated into the brains of nonhuman animals raise moral, ethical, and religious concerns regarding the mixing of humans and other animals, the special status of humans, animals acquiring attributes that could be viewed as distinctively human, or humans taking on roles that should be reserved for a deity.
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From page 100... ...
Well-established regulations and practices emphasize the requirements to minimize the number of animals used; replace them with other experimental models when possible and consistent with the approved scientific aims of the research; alleviate or minimize their pain and distress; and provide them appropriate living conditions, including nutritious food, safe shelter, housing, companionship, and opportunities for stimulation. As transplantation and chimeric models of human brain diseases become better able to model key disease features, research animals are likely to show behaviors that resemble human symptoms and that would be viewed as distressing were they to occur in humans.
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From page 101... ...
Assessment of Consciousness and Pain in Human Neural Organoids, Transplants, and Chimeras Finding IV.1: Decisions about how research on neural cell transplantation and chimeras should be conducted or overseen depend in large part on the possibility that the animal host will have altered capacities as a consequence of its brain cells being augmented or replaced by human cells. The possibilities of pain sensation, and altered consciousness are often raised as issues of particular concern, but both pain and consciousness are difficult to define or measure.
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From page 102... ...
Finding V.5: Some future research, including that involving more complex human neural organoids, transplants, and chimeras and the generation of transplants and chimeras in nonhuman primates, will benefit from additional discussion of ethical and social issues that extend beyond reviews of individual research projects currently carried out by IACUCs. Examples include injection of human stem cells into nonhuman animal blastocysts and indications that suggest enhanced capacities in transplant recipients or chimeras.
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From page 103... ...
Such engagement has several benefits, including helping the public understand the research, identifying public concerns, facilitating informed public discussion, and influencing science policy. However, the United States currently lacks robust mechanisms for facilitating this public engagement.
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