The Geee! in Genome exhibit was the backdrop Wednesday for a discussion at the Red Deer Museum and Art Gallery about genetics and ethics.

The discussion was led by two Red Deer College professors: Pliny Hayes, who teaches genetics, and Guillermo Barron, who teaches philosophy. Hayes and Barron co-teach a science and society class at Red Deer College that will focus on genetics and ethics in September.

“The role of geneticists, doctors and the whole medical profession really is one of technicians. And should be one of technicians,” Hayes told the group of around 20 attending the event. “We cannot be making the decisions on should it be done.”

Hayes said he didn’t know what the next 50 years are going to bring because 55 years ago, when the structure of DNA was discovered, scientists thought its complex sequence would never be known. “I can’t rule out anything,” he said.

Barron sought to allay common fears about genetics and suggest a framework for approaching ethical questions raised: considering them in terms of autonomy, justice and beneficence.

“We have nothing more to fear from genetics than we do from environmental factors,” such as schools and nutrition, he said. “But we’re not going to stop tinkering with people’s environment just because we made a mistake.”

From there, with audience participation, the discussion leapt from the involuntary sterilization formerly practised in Alberta to the emotional nature of genetic questions, to the current status of gene therapy and genetic modification, to screening fetuses for diseases, and more.

And for each “could” there was a “should.”

The discussion lingered on how to use the information garnered from DNA. Should insurance companies use it to evaluate coverage? Should employers surreptitiously use it to make hiring decisions? Should discoveries about genetic origins be forced on cultures with other explanations of origin?

The evening ended with as many questions as it began. It was the first in a Wednesday night series accompanying the exhibit.

Next Wednesday’s event is a screening of The Fly, a 1958 film, in which a scientist accidentally transforms himself into an insect. For more information, visit museum.red-deer.ab.ca

Contact Heather Schultz at hschultz@reddeeradvocate.com