Frontiers in Cell and Developmental Biology (Nov 2023)
Ethical, legal and social aspects of human cerebral organoids and their governance in Germany, the United Kingdom and the United States
- Anja Pichl,
- Anja Pichl,
- Robert Ranisch,
- Robert Ranisch,
- Ozan Altan Altinok,
- Melpomeni Antonakaki,
- Andrew J. Barnhart,
- Katherine Bassil,
- J. Lomax Boyd,
- Alice Andrea Chinaia,
- Sarah Diner,
- Maxence Gaillard,
- Henry T. Greely,
- Joshua Jowitt,
- Karola Kreitmair,
- David Lawrence,
- Tim Nicholas Lee,
- Alex McKeown,
- Vorathep Sachdev,
- Silke Schicktanz,
- Jeremy Sugarman,
- Katharina Trettenbach,
- Katharina Trettenbach,
- Lara Wiese,
- Hannes Wolff,
- Garðar Árnason,
- Garðar Árnason
Affiliations
- Anja Pichl
- Faculty of Health Sciences Brandenburg, University of Potsdam, Germany
- Anja Pichl
- Research Unit “Ethics of Genome Editing”, Institute of Ethics and History of Medicine, The University of Tübingen, Tübingen, Germany
- Robert Ranisch
- Faculty of Health Sciences Brandenburg, University of Potsdam, Germany
- Robert Ranisch
- Research Unit “Ethics of Genome Editing”, Institute of Ethics and History of Medicine, The University of Tübingen, Tübingen, Germany
- Ozan Altan Altinok
- Center for Ethics and Law in the Life Sciences, University of Hannover, Hannover, Germany
- Melpomeni Antonakaki
- Department of Science, Technology and Society, Technical University Munich, Munich, Germany
- Andrew J. Barnhart
- Centre for Biomedical Ethics and Law, KU Leuven, Belgium
- Katherine Bassil
- Department of Psychiatry and Neuropsychology, Maastricht University, Maastricht, Netherlands
- J. Lomax Boyd
- Berman Institute of Bioethics, Johns Hopkins University, Baltimore, MD, United States
- Alice Andrea Chinaia
- IMT School for Advanced Studies, Lucca, Italy
- Sarah Diner
- Institute for Medical Humanities, Medical Faculty, University of Bonn, Bonn, Germany
- Maxence Gaillard
- 0HYBRIDA Project, University of Oslo, Oslo, Norway and UCLouvain, Louvain-la-Neuve, Belgium
- Henry T. Greely
- 1Stanford Law School, Stanford University, Stanford, CA, United States
- Joshua Jowitt
- 2Newcastle Law School, Newcastle University, Newcastle, United Kingdom
- Karola Kreitmair
- 3Department of Medical History and Bioethics, School of Medicine and Public Health, University of Wisconsin-Madison, Madison, WI, United States
- David Lawrence
- 4Durham Law School, Durham University, Durham, United Kingdom
- Tim Nicholas Lee
- 5Edinburgh Infectious Diseases, University of Edinburgh, Edinburgh, United Kingdom
- Alex McKeown
- 6Department of Psychiatry, Wellcome Centre for Ethics and Humanities, University of Oxford, United Kingdom
- Vorathep Sachdev
- 5Edinburgh Infectious Diseases, University of Edinburgh, Edinburgh, United Kingdom
- Silke Schicktanz
- 7Institute of Medical Ethics and History of Medicine, University Medical Center Göttingen, Göttingen, Germany
- Jeremy Sugarman
- 8Berman Institute of Bioethics and Department of Medicine, Johns Hopkins University, Baltimore, MD, United States
- Katharina Trettenbach
- Faculty of Health Sciences Brandenburg, University of Potsdam, Germany
- Katharina Trettenbach
- Research Unit “Ethics of Genome Editing”, Institute of Ethics and History of Medicine, The University of Tübingen, Tübingen, Germany
- Lara Wiese
- 9Institute for Social and Health Law, Ruhr University Bochum, Bochum, Germany
- Hannes Wolff
- 0Chair of Constitutional and Administrative Law, Public International Law, European and International Economic Law, Faculty of Law, University of Passau, Passau, Germany
- Garðar Árnason
- Research Unit “Ethics of Genome Editing”, Institute of Ethics and History of Medicine, The University of Tübingen, Tübingen, Germany
- Garðar Árnason
- 1School of Humanities and Social Sciences, University of Akureyri, Akureyri, Iceland
- DOI
- https://doi.org/10.3389/fcell.2023.1194706
- Journal volume & issue
-
Vol. 11
Abstract
Human cerebral organoids (HCOs) are model systems that enable researchers to investigate the human brain in ways that had previously been impossible. The emergence of HCOs was accompanied by both expert and layperson discussions concerning the possibility of these novel entities developing sentience or consciousness. Such concerns are reflected in deliberations about how to handle and regulate their use. This perspective article resulted from an international and interdisciplinary research retreat “Ethical, Legal and Social Aspects of Human Cerebral Organoids and their Governance in Germany, the United Kingdom and the United States”, which took place in Tübingen, Germany, in August 2022. The retreat focused on whether HCO research requires new ethical and regulatory approaches. It addressed epistemic issues around the detection and theorisation of consciousness, ethical concerns around moral status and research conduct, difficulties for legislation and guidelines managing these entities, and public engagement.
Keywords