Genetic engineering technologies, particularly those that can modify the human genome, pose unique security risks. For instance, they could be used to create genetically enhanced biological agents that are more virulent or resistant to existing treatments. The concerns around the societal impact and aligned ethical concerns of genetic engineering also extend to biological weapons.
- Targeting minorities: Ethnic communities that practise endogamy[e] may have common genetic markers and be vulnerable to the same diseases.[15] These commonalities can make minority groups the target for biological weapons that exploit such disease vulnerabilities. This can include a genetically motivated carrier or delivery system or a genetically enhanced biological agent. In this context, targeting populations based on race, caste, gender, and other sub-groups is not unimaginable.[16]
- Increasing the virulence of biological weapons through genetic engineering: Genetic engineering has long been considered a potential tool for creating more lethal biological warfare agents. In 2003, experiments with the mousepox virus showed that inserting specific human genes, such as interleukin-4 (IL-4),[f] intended to boost the immune response, can result in a virus with significantly greater virulence. Comparable results have been observed with Vaccinia virus strains used in smallpox vaccination.[17] Furthermore, genetic engineering could create camouflaged viruses by hiding them within harmless bacteria.
Although emerging technologies and alliances are an intuitive next step in the future of warfare, security guidelines are yet to account for genetic engineering, being restricted by proxy due to existing standards on scientific limits on research and trade limits on biological agents. The potential societal harm from genetic engineering and its implications for the future of warfare and security necessitate an urgent examination of these issues.
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