Genetic Future Weblog

Genetic Therapy for Cheating in Sports (Bioethics / Chicago Tribune)

http://www.fortwayne.com/mld/newssentinel/living/9115937.htm

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Genetic technology, which already has altered our food supply, will soon be used to enhance our muscles and bodies, scientists say. Gene therapy can help rehabilitate patients suffering from muscle-wasting disease such as muscular dystrophy and improve muscle function for the elderly. But it also would inevitably be co-opted and abused by opportunistic athletes. Already, eager early adopters are knocking on the door of University of Pennsylvania genetic researcher H. Lee Sweeney, who has found that combining genetic manipulation with weight training can double muscle strength and speed in rats [Source: Bioethics + Human Dignity / Chicago Tribune]