人动物嵌合体研究的伦理问题及其消解

Ethical Issues and Resolutions in Human-animal Chimera Research

人动物嵌合体技术正越来越多地应用于大型动物,未来在猪体内培养出可用于移植的人类器官有着很大的可能。嵌合体动物体内含有越来越多的人类物质并存在于其大脑和生殖系统中,可能令其人性化,并具有更高的道德地位甚至尊严。这就提出了一个重要的伦理问题:是否应该创造这样的嵌合体动物?如果是,应该如何对待它们?以破坏自然秩序、不自然和道德混乱论据去反驳人动物嵌合体研究,说服力不足;而非同一性观点则认为科学研究令嵌合体动物的生命变得更有价值,它们并不会受到伤害,因为他们唯一的其他选择并不存在。对这些伦理问题的回答,可对因人动物嵌合体研究产生的伦理风险进行消解。

Human-animal chimera technology is increasingly applied to large animals.It is highly possible to cultivate human organs in pigs for transplantation in the future.Chimeric animals contain more and more human materials and are present in their brains and reproductive systems,which may humanize them and give them a higher moral status and even dignity.It raises an important ethical question:should such chimeric animals be created?If so,how they should be treated.It is not convincing to refute the research of human-animal chimera with the arguments of destroying natural order,unnatural and moral chaos.But the non-identity view holds that scientific research makes the lives of chimeric animals more valuable and that they are not actually harmed because their only other options do not exist.The answers to these ethical questions can resolve the ethical risks arising from the research of human-animal chimera.