Can the human genome be modified? Keys to understanding

The idea of modifying the human genome, long confined to science fiction, has in just a few decades become a real scientific prospect. Thanks to dazzling advances in molecular biology and gene therapy, it is now possible to correct certain mutations responsible for hereditary diseases, explore new treatment strategies directly in the organism, and envisage ever more precise diagnostic tests. But these technical advances are accompanied by major questions: what can we really change in our genetic heritage? What therapeutic benefits can we expect from these approaches, and what risks need to be anticipated? How should society manage these technologies, which touch the very heart of life? And above all: how far do we want to go in modifying the human genome?

This conference is organized by Alain Fischer, member of the Académie des sciences, member of the Académie nationale de médecine, professor emeritus at the Collège de France, former director and co-founder of the Imagine genetic diseases institute at the Necker-Enfants malades hospital (AP-HP).

With the participation of:

Annarita Miccio, researcher at the Imagine Institute, Paris

Jean-Louis Mandel, member of the Académie des sciences, member of the Académie nationale de médecine, research director at the Institut de génétique et de biologie moléculaire et cellulaire (IGBMC - CNRS/Inserm/Université de Strasbourg).

Hervé Chneiweiss, member of the Académie des sciences, research director at CNRS, Sorbonne University Neuroscience Center (Neuro-SU - CNRS/Inserm/Sorbonne University).