In 2024, a group of esteemed scientists publicly warned that a bacteria created entirely with mirror-image biomolecules ("mirror bacteria")—though still years away—could potentially wipe out all life on earth. Gene editing techniques open possibilities of other risks that might be intentionally generated by bad actors, such as bacteria that are immune to all antibiotics and viruses which are engineered to be highly transmissible and deadly. What policies will protect global health from these serious threats while also preserving the potential therapeutic value of manipulated molecules? Please join two leading Stanford experts for a fascinating discussion of a rapidly emerging set of high-stakes scientific, ethical, and regulatory challenges.

Speakers: 

David Relman, MD, the Thomas C. and Joan M. Merigan Professor in Medicine, Professor of Microbiology & Immunology, and Senior Fellow at the Freeman Spogli Institute for International Studies at Stanford University, and Chief of Infectious Diseases at the Veterans Affairs Palo Alto Health Care System. Relman was an early pioneer in the identification of previously unrecognized microbial pathogens, in the development of molecular methods for microbial diagnosis, and in the modern study of the human microbiome.

Henry T. (Hank) Greely, JD, is the Deane F. and Kate Edelman Johnson Professor of Law; Professor, by courtesy, of Genetics; and Director of the Center for Law and the Biosciences at Stanford University.  He specializes in ethical, legal, and social issues arising from the biosciences, particularly genetics, neuroscience, stem cell research, and assisted reproduction.  He is a founder and a past president of the International Neuroethics Society and chairs the California Advisory Committee on Human Stem Cell Research.