(NEW Elective for FALL 2022)
Dr. John D. Loike, Ph.D.
Credits: Course credits assigned: 3
This course is designed to help students master the multi-disciplinary skills and diverse cultural principles and guidelines to develop an ethical approach to deal with CRISPR and gene editing technologies. The future of genome editing and precise genome engineering is adapting, evolving and unfolding at lightning speed raising many ethical challenges that need to be discussed. The various skill sets that this course are designed to develop include: 1) Skills to understand basic scientific and medical knowledge about gene editing and in particular CRISPR technology to tackle the various ethical challenges that have emerged from these pandemics, Explain the way in which CRISPR can be used as a tool to edit genes. Analyze how CRISPR can be used to optimize microbes for the food, health, and energy industries. Compare the use of CRISPR in agriculture when optimizing crops with other applications. 2) Applying skill sets in philosophical, practical, and cultural ethics to address the ethical challenges of gene editing and CRISPR. Recommend guidelines for an ethical use of CRISPR by considering the ethical implications CRISPR genetic manipulation raises as the technology is developed. 3) Skill sets to identify new trends in medicine, research and ethics that will emerge as CRISPR technologies are applied to medicine, agriculture and food science, and 4) Developing a personal and organizational strategic ethical rubric to address and resolve ethical dilemmas.
Prerequisites: N/A
Asynchronous; Set up an appointment via email