Gene therapy is not for creating flawless human beings: Dr. Sharad Paul

Thiruvananthapuram: Eminent skin cancer surgeon and adjunct professor at Auckland University Dr. Sharad Paul said that the unregulated gene therapy and genetic mutation can result in unpredictable results which may end up creating distorted offspring. He was conversing with Sandhya Mary on the topic ‘Gene Therapy: Is tinkering with your genes touching the sacrosanct, or the ultimate healing touch?’ at the second edition of Mathrubhumi International Festival of Letters (MBIFL’19) being held at Kanakakkunnu here on Thursday.

Dr. Sharad Paul who is an academician, evolutionary biologist, writer and social entrepreneur at the same time has a number of works in medical, fiction and non-fiction categories in his credit. When asked about using gene therapy for beauty treatments like stopping early-ageing, he said that lifestyle is the key to almost every disease or health condition we undergo. Gene therapy is ideal to be used for treating a specific health condition of a person.

However, he emphasized on the point that people perceive gene therapy as a solution to creating flawless human beings. In his opinion, this is absolutely wrong in terms of ethics. Making of perfect human beings is not the intention of genetic researchers. Just like consumption of coffee works differently on people according to their metabolic power, gene therapy also works differently on different people.

Being a skin cancer specialist, he explained that mutating genes cannot stop ageing or preserve beauty. In fact, genes are blueprints and our lifestyle largely influence their behavior. When an individual consume junk food and follow an unhealthy lifestyle, the genes also tend to produce unhealthy proteins and gives harmful reactions. As a solution, people can opt healthier lifestyle and diet and thereby make their genes act in the favorable way.

Dr. Sharad Paul also reminded that when people try to mutate genes to reduce the possibility of a hereditary disease in a baby, it may end up in causing some other unexpected health conditions. In some cases, babies who were genetically mutated to prevent HIV were found to have developed cancer later. Similarly, using genetics for day to day things have to be encouraged instead of using it for complicated purposes which may also invite unexpected results.

He also mentioned the case of Angelina Jolie while talking about genes as carrier of hereditary diseases. She had decided to remove her breast when she found that she carries a gene that may cause breast cancer. In fact, more than 90 percent of the women diagnosed with breast cancer do not carry the gene. So it is clear that the mutating gene cannot stop diseases from spreading.

During the Question and Answer session after the Conversation, Dr. Sharad Paul also explained how GM (Genetically Modified) crops are less likely to pose threat to human life. People commonly consume hybrid vegetables and fruits, but they have not found to have developed any disease due to this. After the session, writer and Director of Public Instruction K. V. Mohan Kumar handed over a token of gratitude to Dr. Sharad Paul.

The conversation was conducted at the Bamboo Grove at Kanakakkunnu at 11 in the morning. Mathrubhumi International Festival of Letters 2019 is conducted in eight venues here from January 31 to Febuary 3.