Relatively new gene editing technology that is revolutionizing disease modeling, agriculture and livestock production also presents threats to people and food supplies and should be monitored closely to protect homeland security as needed, according to a new report by an advisory panel to the Department of Homeland Security.
The threat posed by Clustered Regularly Interspaced Short Palindromic Repeats (CRISPR) is that experiments with gene editing that used to take weeks to years can be done “with less technical skill and effort at a fraction of the previous time and costs,” says the report on Biotechnologies by the Emerging Technologies Subcommittee of the Homeland Security Advisory Council (HSAC).
The report highlights several examples of the benefits of CRISPR but also warns that the same technology can have deadly consequences.
In one example, it says “an animal model for human lung cancer was developed in mice using CRISPR components” that were put into a virus that could be transmitted by direct contact. The report says that the successful transmission of the virus in the study shows the potential threats to human populations.
“The application of the CRISPR components into the mouse lungs was facilitated by inhalation of the adenovirus, packaged with the CRISPR components,” the report says. “While the adenovirus used in this study was specific to the mouse model organism, human-specific adenoviruses exist and could be used for delivery of similar CRISPR components into human lung epithelial cells. With this study, the researchers not only demonstrated an efficient methodology for constructing a disease model within the mouse lung but also highlighted a delivery system that with minimal modification could be implemented with humans.”
The report, which was unanimously approved by the HSAC on Tuesday, contains three recommendations. The first calls for DHS to establish a task force to monitor CRISPR and its applications for potential threats to health, food resources, and U.S. national interests.
The subcommittee also recommends that DHS develop the means to detect if CRISPR has been used, whether accidentally or intentionally.
The final recommendation is for DHS to have the ability to stop CRISPR-based gene modifications.
“For example, in the case of an accidental or intentional release of a gene drive that might harm U.S. citizens, U.S. food supply, vegetation, or wildlife, it may become necessary to understand mechanisms to inhibit the action of CRISPR technology,” the report says.
With the HSAC approval, the report and its recommendations head to Acting DHS Secretary Chad Wolf for his review.
The report was presented to the advisory panel by Cathy Lanier, head of security for the National Football League and the chair of the subcommittee, and Robert Rose, the vice chair and who runs his own consulting firm and is a member of the National Security Agency’s Cyber Response Panel.